Dunamis Tes Athena (Athena's Power)
by Staraz
Summary: Danzou's infiltration changed everything. Not wanting to bear any further pain Sakura escapes the village and becomes a missing nin, only to get captured by the Akatsuki. Wrecked with a multitude of life-threatening events, Sakura struggles to keep her sanity intact and her secrets safe to protect her remaining loved ones... And the world itself.
1. Numbness

**OHOHOHO. Suddenly a serious plot emerges in the farthest corners of my brain! I apologise for grammatical and vocabulary errors... I don't have a beta-editor as of yet. Anyone willing to beta-edit can PM me. Thanks dears.**

**Disclaimer: If I do own Naruto, I'd make Kakashi come alive and be my husband. Yes, my husband, because he's too hot and full of flaming charisma to be otherwise. Wishful thinking.**

**0000000 THIS CHAPTER HAS BEEN EDITED. Enjoy :)**

It was a room coloured pitch black from the darkness, foreshadowing what was to come. A door creaked open.

Footsteps.

Then it stopped. The room was deathly silent, except for a person's ragged breathing.

"State your name and title." An eerily calm voice echoed through the room.

The ragged breathing stopped and gave way to bitter, hoarse laughter.

"Not a chance… Uchiha."

The man was silent for a moment before he continued. "I suppose it does not matter, as we already know of you."

The slumped figure chained to the wall stared unflinchingly into his red eyes, not bothering to dignify it with a response.

"It is imperative that you answer my questions or you will be subjected to another person's more... unpleasant questioning methods," he continued in a matter-of-fact manner, scrutinizing her with his piercing gaze. "Have you been in contact with Konoha?"

It took some time before the figure reacted to the question. "No."

"When was the last time you set foot in the village?"

"2 years ago."

He crouched down to meet the figure's emerald gaze. When he spoke, it was softer. "Why did you leave, Haruno?"

Her jade eyes stared back at him, impossible to read. When she responded, her voice was eerily devoid of emotion. "Because I have nothing left."

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"She does not seem to be lying." A man with piercings paced back and forth slowly, appearing to be in deep thought.

The corridor was painted a dull grey, which seemed to match the mood of the Akatsuki members huddled outside the room where a particular female was being chained in. A man clucked his tongue in disapproval.

"I think we should just kill the fucking bitch if she's lying! Jashin-sama's been asking for a nice, easy, little sacrifice," Akatsuki's Hidan sneered derisively.

Itachi chose not to respond to Hidan's comment but Pein's. "Aa." After a moment's pause, he continued in his smooth voice. "Uzumaki may really be hiding from the girl that he's alive."

The man stopped walking, focusing his piercing gaze on him. His gaze was intense, but Itachi had been on the receiving end of it numerous times to know it was not a warning gaze.

"How sure are you that he's alive?"

"I am not. However, the Kyuubi will not allow his host and his own self to die. As long as Uzumaki has access to the Kyuubi's enhancing abilities, he will be alive."

A pensive look crossed the man's features as he pondered on the likelihood of it for a moment. When he spoke, it sounded curious. "Unless, at the time of his death - during Danzou's attack on Konoha, the Kyuubi was transferred to a different body and hence the Kyuubi chakra we sensed a few months ago now belongs to someone else."

Itachi had already considered that possibility, giving an acknowledging nod. "That is possible as well. Such an attack on Konoha can cause people to be distracted. The sealing ritual would have commenced rather smoothly, if it was done at a distance from the village and done quickly. However, Uzumaki's body has not been found, so we need to consider the earlier option as well."

"Leader-sama, are you sure you sensed the demon's chakra recently?" Kisame Hoshigaki asked. He was a large blue-skinned man, leaning casually against the wall with his arms folded. To his right, a blonde, feminine-looking man as well as a masked man listened intently for the Leader's answer.

Pein directed his gaze onto the Mist nin, who shifted uncomfortably. Then he spoke in a tone warranting no further discussion on the topic. "I have never been wrong in sensing chakra. If I said it came from Iwagakure, the jinchuuriki_ is_ in Iwagakure."

Silence reigned across the corridor. The other members of Akatsuki smartly kept their mouth shut, waiting for the verdict of their Leader on the situation.

"The Kyuubi is most probably alive. We are going to need Haruno Sakura on our side to find it."

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She was no longer the same innocent girl she knew many years ago. She had seen war, fought in it and ran away from it when she couldn't take it.

Like what she did 4 years ago, when Danzou had infiltrated Konoha and ended up eliminating the Hokage in a fierce battle. She knew her shishou wouldn't last long, and it was all her fault.

Her fault and Naruto's. He was told to stay out of harm's way, but he didn't.

After the battle which caught Konoha unaware, Sakura's self slowly faded, leaving nothing behind but an empty shell of what she used to be. Her friends are dead. Her sensei is dead. Her shishou was gone right before her eyes. Her parents died in the battle as their house collapsed from a huge bomb that incapacitated many civilians. She had nothing left. And she knew the other survivors felt the same way, judging by Hinata's constantly glazed eyes, Neji's empty gaze once he entered Root, Sai's lifeless eyes as he too re-entered the organization… and the many others, who now spoke in hushed whispers for fear of being charged for treason against the new Hokage.

There was barely anything else to live for in Konoha, and everyone else knew it.

So on a cool, quiet night, she packed a few necessary items, and ran.

She wasn't foolish though. She knew she had to enhance her skills to survive in the wild. It was when Danzou had called her to his office, 23 days after the battle, that she formulated an idea to enhance her survival skills.

"_Haruno, you are the Godaime's student, are you not?" The man's gaze was piercing as he scrutinized her intently._

"_Yes, Hokage-sama." Sakura said, trying not to show any vestiges of anger. She was now at his bidding, and it wouldn't do to get herself simply executed for rude conduct as Kiba had._

_He leaned forward and perched his elbows on the table, studying her._

_Then he spoke._

"_Haruno, how much do you know of kekkei genkai?"_

It was then that she was tasked with the opportunity to study kekkei genkai, which was deemed to only be inherited. Danzou, with all his manipulative, cunning ideas, wanted all his shinobi to be able to use kekkei genkai.

And he wanted Sakura to study it and do it. She was free to study Neji's and Hinata's eyes, and since Hinata was "not much of a contribution to the village", she was also free to test and alter Hinata's eyes, much to her disgust. She did nothing of the sort, though. Fortunately for her, she was able to come up with significant findings despite not testing on a subject. Her findings were reported to the Hokage at regular intervals to keep him satiated in his ambitions. What he did not know was that she withheld a few important information so that only she knew understood kekkei genkai well.

Then she found it. On a late Saturday night, she was in the lab and found one of her dish tray specimens positive with kekkei genkai cells.

That same night, she altered her own eyes. The pain was stabbing and for a torturous hour, she felt as though she was being ripped to shreds. It was only 2 hours after that she came to and - after wiping her bloodied eyes - discovered in the mirror that her eyes shimmered an eerie powerful yellow when activated. It was surreal. She, Haruno Sakura, had done it.

The next day – her day off – she arrived at an isolated training ground at 6am, intent on training in secret. She suspected her Earth and Water element advantages would enable her to have Mokuton element as well, similar to the late Yamato-taichou. Procuring a scroll from her bag – provided conveniently by Danzou to aid in her studying – she proceeded to scan through the scroll of kekkei genkai jutsus.

It was from that day onwards that she started training ever Sunday in the morning, not informing Danzou of the recent breakthrough, but feeding him slips of information that made it seem as though he was close to his goal, when she had already achieved it.

One Sunday morning, a man was caught her red-handed with her kekkei genkai. She was attempting to harness her Wind element enough for Hyoton jutsu, which was a combination of Wind and Water.

She stared at him rebelliously, her chin jutting out in defiance as she stood her ground. "I will not lose this fight, Neji," she stated clearly and calmly, although her mind was anything but. Her fingers trembled in fear but she clung on tight to her faith, hoping… just hoping for something to happen.

Then he came closer, until his nose was barely inches from her.

"Your Wind element is weak. You need training," he remarked in his smooth baritone voice. His gaze never wavered from her, his breath tickling her face.

Sakura smiled for the first time in months, a genuine, grateful, dimpled smile reaching her eyes.

It was an intensive training, and when Neji felt the presence of Root around, he would signal to her to deactivate her kekkei genkai, as if they were simply training to harness each other's abilities. It was rather fortunate that Neji managed to keep his mental self intact and fool Root members into thinking he was one of them. Her abilities shot up considerably quickly under his supervision and they grew even closer. She started to feel strongly for him, and it was the same for the Byakugan user as well. Their affections for each other grew stronger every day. He was like light coming from a crevice in the four walls Sakura had built around herself, and she strangely welcomed it, since it was a feeling she had never felt in so long.

For a brief period of time, she was happier than she had felt in months.

Then it was abruptly gone as he was found guilty of treason. He had been plotting to destroy Danzou's mind control devices implanted into Root and was caught infiltrating Root's secret archives in search for an answer.

He was promptly executed the night he was discovered red-handed.

Sakura received the news in the morning. She was sitting in her apartment kitchen, sipping her tea when she heard a knock on the door. It was an Root member, who'd impassively informed her of the news and promptly disappeared.

For a moment, she was attacked by sudden anguish. She lost grip on her tea, coating the white tiles on the floor with the thick, brown liquid. She sobbed uncontrollably on the ground, wishing for the pain to stop. Her body curled on its own accord on the floor as she struggled to breathe. It was only when she noticed the wisps of cold air exiting her mouth with every breath that she realised she had been lying on the floor for a very, very long time.

It was when she proceeded to pick up the broken china pieces from the floor that numbness overtook her. In her daze, she faintly realised her fingers were bleeding from the jagged shards, dripping blood everywhere and that she felt absolutely nothing.

She felt numb, and she welcomed it like an old friend. It was her only defense against pain, and it lingered, reassuring her that she was safe. It helped, becaue at that moment, she needed to think of her next move, and she definitely could not stay in Konoha any longer.

Her thoughts raced through her mind like a puzzle she was itching to solve. She realised she'd be likely to be suspected as his accomplice, seeing as they had been together. She was likely to be interrogated.

Dimly, she realised she couldn't let that happen, not when she had secrets to hide as well. To be specific, her kekkei genkai secret, as well as a much deeper, darker secret which she had never uttered even to Neji or anyone else after the event that occurred in the battle.

So -with a swift change of clothes and a quick walk to her lab- she pretended to be absorbed in her work all day, while requesting for some privacy. At 7pm, she destroyed all her work after sealing her written work in a scroll that can only be activated by herself. She shakily packed her items in a small bag discreetly, and ran south.

She never stopped running until landed herself in a small village in Tanigakure, River country.

It was then that her life as a missing nin began.

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"Haruno Sakura." The man standing before Sakura was one she faintly recognised and had memorised his abilities as Tsunade's student.

Pein. The man was not to be messed with. She had heard stories about his powers being equal to a god from other missing nins she had to work with. She clenched her fingers slightly, feeling uncomfortable that she was chained.

She wasn't sure how they found her, but she had a strong feeling as to who was guilty for it.

The man continued, leveling his stare at her. "Do you know what Akatsuki's goal is?"

She did not bother to respond, only with a brief shaking of her head while staring resolutely at the ground.

"Our goal is to achieve world peace, by being in control of all bijuu and controlling countries with a firm hand. This way, no one will retaliate, and wars will cease. We are now in need of the last bijuu, the Kyuubi," at this, he paused, "And I have an inkling that the Kyuubi is still alive somewhere."

It was a slap to the face when he said it. Her blood ran cold but she could not, _she would not_ show her surprise or fear. Because if she did, he would know that he was speaking the truth.

And she'd be damned if things ricocheted into hell.

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**Hello guys. (dodges eggs and tomatoes) I'm SORRY! I HAD WRITER'S BLOCK FOR SO LONG! I know! If you'd like to spur my writing ability, please review :3 Teehee.**

**Oh! Maybe I should explain what roughly happens here. Danzou had overtaken Konoha and killed many. Sakura has grown smarter, hence my title refers to her as Athena. Sakura has become a (new and improved) missing nin. Akatsuki is still present and suspects the Kyuubi/Naruto is still alive as his body wasn't found. However, only Sakura knows the truth and is hiding a deadly secret - hence the title, Power of Athena. (ooooo, mysterious.)**

**More mysteries to be revealed next chapter.**

**Lovelove! -staraz-**


	2. Saya

**Disclaimer: Kakashi is hot and full of flaming charisma so he is most likely invincible in my story. I think that's a pretty obvious clue there… I hope that answers your question Poppy!**

**Also, I have not decided on the Sakura pairing, sadly. So you must review to tell me who should be her soulmate! (gushes)**

**On a sidenote, any beta-editors? **

**3 months before capture**

It was a quiet afternoon, except for the light chatter that was rumbling through the village. A man in a black cloak sat atop a tree not far from the village. Every few minutes or so, he would fidget as if waiting for someone. Half of his face was obscured from view by his blonde hair, but one could sense his impatience growing by the minute.

Finally, a man darted through the trees. "Finally," Deidara muttered, annoyed. "Did you get us a damn mission already, yeah?"

The visitor seemed to grin through his mask, his happy demeanour irritating the blonde nin further. "Tobi got us a mission! Tobi is good boy!"

His companion sighed audibly, not bothering to answer the self-praising remark. "What's the mission, Tobi? Pein wants those with 6-digit pay or more."

"Tobi knows! Tobi got us an awesome retrieval mission. And Deidara-sempai can blow things up after we leave!" the masked man chirped, hopping excitedly.

Deidara brightened considerably at the thought of explosions. "That's great news, yeah." He jumped off the tree, landing stealthily on the ground.

"Oh! Tobi forgot to say that we have a partner again! We are working with Saya-chan tomorrow! It will be a blast!" Tobi added hastily.

Deidara groaned, raking his fingers through his long fringe. "Not again," he muttered. The last time he worked with her, she refused to allow him to blow up _anything. _The girl was stubborn with a capital S, and he suspected, too soft to live as a nin. Nevertheless, their previous work demonstrated their capability to work together as a team – even on those times without Tobi to do missions, they were equally proficient together.

She had grown on him as well. The kunoichi was usually silent and reserved unless her temper was ignited. The first time her fist landed on his face, he was compelled to anger her again just to see her large-scale explosions of fiery temper. It was an art he could appreciate.

He'd never expect such a boring-looking brunette kunoichi to be so interesting.

He halted his line of thought, realising that Tobi was peering at him rather curiously and had been calling his name for quite a few moments. "Hm. Let's get some rest Tobi. We can talk about the mission later after I've got some shuteye, yeah." He cleared his throat, trying to dispel the awkwardness he felt about thinking too much about his female partner for the mission.

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The next day, the two Akatsuki trudged silently to the meeting point a little further from the village. Upon nearing the meeting point, they caught sight of the familiar kunoichi poised on a large rock. She was meditating. Without opening her eyes, she spoke. It was a reserved tone but promising much pain.

"You're late." Deidara and Tobi physically cringed at her words, knowing they had to abate her temper before it rose up to gigantic proportions.

"We had to get our weapons sharpened in the morning, yeah."

"…There is no weapons shop in this village or within a 50 mile radius of it."

Deidara waited in anticipation for her outburst but it didn't come. Instead, she merely opened her eyelids, revealing tired chocolate brown eyes. She jumped lightly off the rock, walking ahead of them. "Forget it. I'm tired. Let's just get this over with," she said flatly, her voice tinged with an unrecognizable emotion.

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They travelled in companionable silence with Tobi in the middle. Throughout the travel, not a single word was uttered by either of them. To Deidara, it seemed as though something must have occurred to her as she would usually still be discussing mission details and filling in on her plan to execute it. It was an unspoken rule that she planned the rough details of the mission. Previously, it had gone bad when Deidara and Tobi planned them.

"_Saya, you do know we are Akatsuki right? It's for the best that we plan. We are the most feared organization, you know, hm?"_

_The girl appeared unfazed by his comment, not seeming to care that he was an Akatsuki member. "Fine, go ahead. Don't say I didn't warn you."_

"_Don't worry, Saya-chan! Tobi will come up with good plan!"_

"…_Okay."_

_At the end of the unsuccessful mission, they were promptly thrown out of the building by the missions manager without any pay._

"We can talk here. I'll fill you in on the plan." Deidara snapped out of his musings, glancing at his female partner for the mission.

She was in working mode right now. He could see it in the way her shoulders were tense with anticipation and the calculative look in her eyes.

"This will be a simple retrieval mission, so it will be the same as the previous time we did this. Deidara, you and Tobi distract the guards, while I run in and get our target Kazuma Takase. I run out, you take him and I'll deal with the guards. I'll meet you here and we can go. Remember to conserve enough chakra for travel. Deidara, you are free to use your explosives for distraction to conserve some chakra," she explained tersely. "Are we clear?"

It was getting increasingly obvious that she wasn't herself on that day. She had said the whole plan in the span of 1 minute when she was usually much more detailed than that. However, both Deidara and Tobi nodded in agreement and proceeded to near the destination.

Their destination was a prison facility.

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Sakura did not like working with the Akatsuki. No, she did not like it one bit. She bit her lip, glancing surreptitiously at the two now-familiar Akatsuki nins.

Today was not her day. She realised it was the anniversary of Danzou's takeover, and she couldn't help thinking of those who died because of the unnecessary bloodshed.

What was worse was the two Akatsuki with her right now, as if Kami was warning her of something bad about to happen. Although she had worked with them so far and gave away nothing, it felt as though something different was going to happen this time. Something really... unpleasant.

She did not like it.

With her emotions in turmoil, she might blow her cover. However, her henge was good enough to cover her real identity and her chakra control had never wavered since the event. She was safe in that aspect, she hoped.

Also, both Deidara and Tobi were not such bad missing nins once she worked with them. Sure, Deidara was a sucker for exploding things and blowing himself up, but he was a decent guy altogether.

She wasn't sure about Tobi though. That was the man she was more wary of. He was a man but he acted like a kid. It wasn't normal at all, though Deidara was used to it.

The first time she was told that her partners were Akatsuki members, she froze in contemplation. Did she want to work with them? She wanted to decline, but as she thought about it, there was only so much she could do to avoid them. They hogged many of the illegal missions, as though looking to top up their funds considerably. If she declined all missions with them, she'd have to decline almost all, because many illegal businessmen sought them out to personally do missions. Those businessmen did so simply because they were the best of the best and the most efficient in carrying out missions quickly.

She could avoid the Akatsuki like the plague, sitting on her butt almost half the time. However, her restlessness prevented her from doing so. There was the also fact that she couldn't avoid them forever. In addition, she had her henge and chakra control so she'd be fine interacting with them. No one would be the wiser. In fact, they'd probably notice her less once she interacted with them and became familiar with them.

And maybe, just maybe, they'd let slip some important matters that she could use to warn Suna. Before Konoha was overtaken, she'd grown to love Suna and its people, courtesy of Naruto. When Konoha was gone, she couldn't help but want to protect Suna from the same fate.

That was also the reason why she did not run to Suna. If Gaara found her, he'd whisk her away into hiding in a heartbeat. He, as well and Temari and Kankurou and other Sand nins, cared for Naruto's teammates as much as they cared for him. They'd protect her fiercely as they would do for a sibling.

She couldn't afford to put them in danger. She wouldn't. Danzou had spies everywhere. If she'd been in Suna, she would have been discovered eventually, and the two countries may erupt into a war. Innocent lives will be lost. Also, she will endure a larger risk of her secret being discovered if she was retrieved by Danzou and submit to interrogation.

No, she needed to keep travelling. She couldn't afford to stay in Suna with all the risk it brought.

Furthermore, she had grown to accept the longstanding fact that the people she grew close to will eventually go.

It seemed ironic how the significant ones went first, and the ones who'd never expected to last escaped death and end up alive and whole. She didn't want to bring Gaara and his siblings to the same fate. She couldn't afford to feel any more pain.

Right now, she was safe in her shell. She busied herself with missions, earning her a lot of income. She was the same workaholic as she had been in Konoha, albeit in a different way.

"We're here," Deidara whispered in her ear, interrupting her musings. Her eyes snapped to his azure ones beside her and she straightened her posture and gave him the signal. They split up, Tobi heading for the prison entrance directly, while Sakura headed from the right and Deidara from the left.

Time for action.

Sakura only had to wait with bated breath for two minutes. A loud string of explosions occurred simultaneously, rocking the ground violently. A siren rang as prison guards – likely jounin or higher level – dashed out to meet their visitor. A loud eerie cackle pierced through the air, sounding suspiciously like Deidara's.

They were very good at distraction, Sakura mused inwardly, as she scaled the dome-like building. Upon reaching the upper level, she deftly smashed a window with her fist. Upon darting in, she found two men cornering her in a large office.

"Why, if it isn't a little kunoichi," one of them sneered.

"Surrender and you will experience less pain," the other said simply.

Her eyes narrowed. She was irritated with the first shinobi, but she did not respond. She had to move quickly.

Running past the table and chairs – an unfortunate obstruction, but nothing she couldn't handle- she flipped onto a table, making seals at the same time. "Fuuton: Reppushou!" She whipped her hand forward and an extremely strong gust of wind rushed through the windows, knocking the arrogant shinobi against the wall unconscious, while the other had dodged out of harm's way.

Reaching for something in his pouch, the shinobi launched shuriken at her, which Sakura promptly dodged. To her shock, some started exploding in midair, leaving her unable to avoid some fragments that had lodged themselves in her arm. She cursed, knowing she was not attentive enough.

It really wasn't one of her best days. And she really did not feel like fighting on that day.

Knowing that she will berate herself later, Sakura ran through handseals, bit her thumb and pressed her palm on the ground. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" As though aware of the urgency, Maya appeared immediately by her side, proceeding to watch the shinobi.

"Go," the wildcat instructed without further explanation. Dodging through more shuriken, Sakura ran out of the room, not looking back. She knew Maya would be able to handle it, as he was slightly low level for a Jounin, which she was rather surprised at.

She had no time to ponder for that, for she was already unpicking the lock to a certain prisoner's room. Kazuma was grinning as she went to him. "Sorry about this," she said, glancing briefly at his features. He could have been considered good-looking at one point in his life, but that period was already over for him.

His smile faltered slightly. "Sorry about what?"

"This." Sakura immediately pressed a fingertip to his temple before the man could react, rendering him unconscious. It would be easier to carry him than lose him again while running. Using her chakra enhanced strength, she easily hoisted him over her shoulder and started running out through the upper level of the building. She easily ran downwards, not breaking her speed when she landed on the horizontal ground. Deidara was really having fun with his bombs, but it was time to go. She whistled, getting his and Tobi's attention. Nodding at her, they ran in her direction. At the same time, Deidara's bird landed gracefully beside her, waiting for them. She landed nimbly on the bird the same time Deidara and Tobi did, placing the man beside her. She barely got a grip on the bird before it took off at a fast speed, leaving the enemy nin behind. When they were high up in the air, she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Good job Saya-chan!" Tobi remarked cheerfully.

Sakura fought the urge to roll her eyes at his antics. Proceeding to remove the fragments on her arm, she quickly healed the cuts. She did not even wince as the deep fragments slowly slid out, leaving her arm well and whole. She had been through worse. Looking at the two of them, she decided to debrief.

"Both of you did a good job. I think we should head for the-"

It all happened in a quick flash. She was promptly grabbed by two strong arms encircling her, catching her off guard as the arms brought her rolling off the bird's back.

She had no time to resist as she struggled against the hold in mid-air as they fell, their speed growing frighteningly faster by the second. She could notice for a brief second of the bird swooping low to catch her.

But Deidara was too slow.

Frustrated, she elbowed her captor in the ribs, earning her a disgruntled oomph. He removed his grip just as they were about to land.

Sakura absorbed the landing with her legs, feeling the bones in her ankle crack slightly from the pressure. It was better that way than her whole body feeling the impact of the fall. She ignored the throbbing pain, knowing it was not the time to heal. Then she promptly focused on her surroundings.

A cold chill ran up her spine. There was a thick, dense fog surrounding the clearing.

She couldn't see anything.

"Don't panic. Don't panic," she chanted to herself as it was a mantra.

Her eyes darted from side to side, waiting for the man to make his move. Every one of her senses was on alert.

For a moment, the air seemed to still.

He was likely to make his move soon.

She was wondering if she should activate her kekkei genkai to see through the fog when she heard fast-paced footsteps from behind.

Whipping around, she turned to look at her captor and was surprised to see the same shinobi who fought her earlier, charging at her with kunai which she evaded swiftly.

She pulled out her own two kunai, meeting him almost hit for hit. Alarmingly, she noticed he was faster than she expected and her specialty wasn't speed. She dodged a kunai and rammed her feet into his right hip.

He smiled, and she froze in shock. He seemed to be made of stone. "You can't hit me now, princess," he drawled. "Didn't think you could get away so easily, did you?"

She chose not to respond. If she couldn't hit him, she could outsmart him. Her mind was whirring with thoughts progressing at a rapid pace, busy formulating a plan.

"I'm going to kill you and have a fun time killing those Akatsuki."

"If you wish," she said, shrugging. She knew it would make him furious. And it worked.

He snarled in anger. Calling the earth, a thick, long projectile shot up at her, which she dodged. A large number of similar projectiles shot up from the ground aiming for her. Quickly, she made handseals. The projectiles rammed through Sakura and she transformed into a log.

She hid in the bushes, waiting for his next move as he circled the clearing. He seemed to be looking for her.

"Looking for me, princess?" a voice whispered in her ear from behind as her eyes widened imperceptibly. Her instincts were screaming at her to run and she did.

The real nin unleashed a fireball which she deftly blew away with a Wind jutsu.

Then a barrage of shuriken came from behind at the same time.

She had totally forgotten his bunshin was still in the clearing. _I am so stupid, _she thought bitterly, as one shuriken lodged itself in her left shoulder as it exploded.

It was a mind-numbing pain, but it was to be expected, considering how much she had underestimated this shinobi earlier. Remembering Maya earlier, she suddenly froze. She really hoped Maya was okay.

She couldn't afford to hold back now. She was forced to use her techniques, and if Deidara and Tobi were nearby, she'd hope they wouldn't recognise it as techniques from the Godaime. Besides, the fog provided her with a cover.

Maybe they won't notice her handiwork so much. Crouching low on the ground, she channelled her chakra into her right hand and brought it down.

It was a massive crater and she noticed with satisfaction that the clone had disappeared, leaving only his real self staggering, his chakra levels wavering erratically.

She finally had him where she wanted.

As expected, his stone self wavered, flickering erratically and changing into his human form as he struggled to regain his balance. In a split second, she jumped at the opportunity and straddled him and gave him one hard chakra-infused punch, noting with satisfaction that it managed to knock him out.

Still breathing heavily from the aftermath, the rosette-haired kunoichi's mind was swirling with conflicting thoughts of the nin beneath her.

She couldn't leave him as he was, as he might have recognised her techniques. However, she couldn't kill him either.

Silence reigned over the clearing as she tried to think a way out of her dilemma. Her shoulder throbbed in warning and she faintly noticed that she had to decide quick before she passed out from blood loss.

Her fingers shook as she reached up to touch her closed eyes and opened them to reveal a shimmery yellow.

She had to be quick. Almost reluctantly, she pressed her trembling fingertips to the sides of his forehead, entering his memory to erase the fight. There was a slight jolt before the process started. Channeling chakra and manipulating brain waves were difficult. Any mistake would cause him to be insane or disabled, so she did it with caution, even with the wound she was bearing.

Then it was done. She sighed with relief, noting that her memory manipulation was successful. Upon removing her hands, she felt strangely dizzy. Her fingers felt numb as she realised that she was out of her own original chakra.

The last thing she remembered was her kekkei genkai deactivating on its own accord. Everything went black.

Then her henge promptly deactivated.

00000

Deidara was emitting a long stream of curses that would have made Tobi blush if he wasn't wearing his mask. "We have to get to her! Where the hell is she?"

"Deidara-sempai, Saya-chan can handle herself! Tobi knows you like her, so don't worry about her! Saya is strong!" Tobi replied, darting with him through the trees with the man hoisted on his shoulder.

"I don't like her yeah!"

It was frustrating for the both of them as the fog thickened in intensity. Deidara pulled back his fringe, activating his scope. He looked around anxiously and was relieved when he spotted two faint chakra signatures further ahead. "This way Tobi!" he said, running.

The two of them came to a stop outside the clearing, noticing the large crater. For a moment, they stared. "Shit. This guy is powerful. Saya!" he called, running to the bodies slumped on the ground.

Only that it wasn't Saya. Beside the shinobi, who appeared to be unconscious, was an equally unconscious girl with rosette hair fanning out from her face. Her eyes were closed. She appeared to look peaceful as though she was merely sleeping if not for the puddle of blood pooling around her shoulder.

"That's… Saya's chakra," Deidara noted grimly. "So, a henge really fooled us, yeah."

Tobi was uncharacteristically silent, not saying anything until a while later when Deidara proceeded to haul her over his shoulder. His voice had lost its uncharacteristic boyish edge.

"She looks… familiar."

0000000

When Sakura awoke, she was at the Healer's. Not recalling what happened, the Healer told her of two nins who brought her here in her state, and left her share of the pay on the table beside her bed. While she was explaining what happened, the Healer seemed to have an odd gleam in her eyes. She was curious about something, but she didn't ask.

Sakura decided that the less things people ask, the safer she was.

"Oh, I see. Thank you for your time, Healer-san," she said politely. The Healer nodded as she walked out of the room, intent on giving her privacy.

Feeling like her insides had been bludgeoned by a chainsaw, she hobbled over to the mirror. She sighed in relief as she saw a familiar brunette kunoichi with dark eyes, satisfied to see her henge still intact.

0000000

**The reason for Sakura's henge dropping is simple in my story. She was chakra-less. However, when she woke up, instinct brought forth her henge again and she THOUGHT she didn't drop her henge. Of course the Healer noticed but didn't ask… Since it's common among missing nins to don a henge now and then. And you can already guess who told Pein that Sakura was in town…**

**Also, she activated her kekkei genkai at the last part to make it easier to probe the dude's mind. In case you're wondering.**

**Also, there was a comment saying about how so many people have died… well I can assure you that nothing is what it seems. ALSO, PLEASE REVIEW ABOUT WHO YOU THINK SHOULD BE PAIRED WITH SAKURA. I HAVE NOT CHOSEN YET.**

**Please please review! I'll give you Kakashi for free! Now that'll tempt you! :D**

_**Hey I just met you, and this is crazy**_

_**But here's the review button, so review, maybe? (points downward):D**_


	3. Sakura

000000

Sakura stared dimly into the darkness, sliding in and out of consciousness. Her mind was swirling with panicked thoughts as she recalled the mission she took with Tobi and Deidara 3 days ago, prior to her 'capture'.

It wasn't really a capture because… well, they didn't really capture her.

They were _saving _her. It was a mission that went very, very wrong.

She had told Deidara and Tobi to escape while she handled the Daimyo's guards. The mission had been completed successfully (assassinating a corrupt Daimyo who clearly had too much time on his filthy hands killing innocents and capturing young girls).

They were in the midst of escaping. Sakura was mentally counting the mission money they would receive("One thousand Ryo… Two thousand Ryo… Three thousand Ryo…") when the trio encountered ANBU-level guards.

Ever since the fateful mission had occurred, neither Deidara or Tobi had brought up anything about it, so she assumed that nothing much had happened. They were however, more uncharacteristically silent. Personally, she preferred it that way. Less words, less trouble.

Right?

So wrong. Sakura hummed quietly to herself, knowing that she was reaching her wit's end and failing miserably in her plan to evade the Akatsuki.

She recalled that fateful day telling them to go first while she handled the guards. Both Tobi and Deidara had done most of the work up to that point, so she felt she needed to pull her weight a little. She could handle them with her doujutsu. In addition, there were only 2 guards. Not wanting further unnecessary bloodshed, she decided on simply stopping them from trailing.

"Be careful, yeah. See you at the meeting point." Deidara shot her an uncharacteristically concerned look before running off with Tobi.

She did not even have time to reply, for the guards were both forming handseals. Their combined wind and earth jutsu spiralled projectiles into Sakura's abdomen and she disappeared in smoke.

Annoyed, the men darted to look for the brunette kunoichi. However, they were too slow. Behind their backs, from a distance, the yellow-eyed Sakura had already made her seals. Her figure was crouched on the ground, frowning in concentration.

Lifting her fist up high, she proceeded to slam it to the ground. "Mokuton: Taiso!" A waterfall of wood promptly erupted from the ground with vibrations the equivalent to an earthquake. Sakura remained still, placing her palms flat on the ground while she channelled her chakra to the tall wood wall that was darting for the two guards who had frozen in shock. The wood engulfed their bodies completely, creating a large dome around them that was largely resistant to chakra-based attacks.

It'll take them awhile to get out of it, Sakura mused as she stood up, stretching her arms. The move had taken most of her chakra and she already started to feel the strain. She was just about to head for the direction Deidara and Tobi had gone when she felt a flare of chakra behind her.

Her eyes widened imperceptibly as she quickly spun on her heel to give a kick at her visitor. It was another guard, who caught her chakra-enhanced kick with his hands and proceeded to slam her body to the ground.

The last thing she remembered thinking was 'I am so screwed.'

Of course, the interrogation by the guards afterwards brought much pain. The chakra-sealing binds were an unfortunate addition. They reduced her chakra to a very low level. Fortunately for her, it was enough to keep her henge. She didn't speak a word. For the next three days, she had broken 3 ribs, 3 fingers, 3 toes and 3 other bones in her area.

Sakura deduced the number 3 must have been a lucky number for the late Daimyo.

It was on the third day that she decided to speak her mind. Her voice was hoarse and raw from disuse, her throat hurt like a son of a bitch, but she decided to speak anyway.

In another time, it would have sounded sexy, but not today. She cleared her throat at her guard-of-the-hour, beckoning him with her better hand to come closer. He narrowed his eyes in a frown, but moved closer anyway. After all, what could she do?

"Ne, why do you keep me here? It's not like the Daimyo is some saint. Apparently the villagers will be happy that he's gone. I'm pretty sure YOU'RE happy too," she retorted, her eyes burning fiercely.

She was surprised when the man avoided her gaze and proceeded to look at the door cautiously. Satisfied that no one was listening, he leaned in and whispered, "Daimyo's son's orders."

"Daimyo's son?" Oh. _Oh._ She didn't know he had a son. She probed him a little further, curious.

"Is he… angry?" The guard looked at her almost pityingly, and said "I'm afraid yes."

She sighed. Wondering at how she could possibly escape this predicament, she looked away, signalling the end of the conversation.

It was then that another voice decided to speak up. It had been decidedly quiet for a good year, so she was surprised when it spoke in her head.

_You can use me._

Sakura ignored his comment, proceeding to stare at her fingernails intently. The chakra-binding chains rattled with her movement. Despite being chained to the wall, the chains were long enough to provide her with some movement. Hence, she was able to place her hands on her lap.

_Stop ignoring me, Sakura. I only mean to help._

**You mean, help yourself. **Inner Sakura gave a snort in response.

_True… However, seeing as you are Naruto's friend, I will protect you as promised. Therefore you are free to use my chakra as you wish._

**And let Pein or Madara sense it? I can't let that happen. **

_Your primary motive should be escape now, girl. _

**I know. I'm trying to figure it out. **Sakura closed her eyes, thinking.

Then her eyes shot open. She didn't know why she didn't think of it before.

"Guard," she called softly. He glanced at her cautiously, as though appraising her.

Clearing her throat awkwardly, she said "I need to use the ladies." Throughout the whole three days, she had only gone to the toilet twice. She was dehydrated to the point where going to the toilet had become unnecessary.

He nodded again, proceeding to remove a collection of keys from his pocket. It was then that a loud rumble was heard from above, as though there was a large bomb that occurred. Senses on alert, he stood up, proceeding to dart through out of the room to check it out. His figure soon disappeared from sight, knowing she was helpless in escaping.

"Damn it!" Sakura muttered angrily. She was so close to escaping, intending to disable her henge and channel her chakra into his brain so he would fall unconscious. She intended to make it quick since she did not have much chakra with the ropes, but the distraction above had caused her plan to fail.

Then a loud explosion occurred from the level above and caused a large chunk of the ceiling to fall. Instinctively, she curled her feet towards her form to avoid being crushed.

She received the shock of her life when a blonde angel dropped from above, landing in front of her. She rubbed her eyes in disbelief.

"What happened to 'careful', hmm?" the angel said in an odd familiar voice, walking to her.

She knew that voice. Blinking twice, his form stabilised and she noticed, to her disappointment, that he wasn't an angel.

"Deidara," she acknowledged flatly.

"In the flesh, yeah." He grinned toothily at her as he reached for a tag inside his cloak. "Now stay still, I'm going to break you out of this hellhole."

"I was doing just fine before you came," Sakura muttered, annoyed.

He froze as he neared her suddenly, frowning. "Wow, you look really bad." Then he flashed her a guilty look. Sakura didn't understand why then.

She glared mutinously at him. "Yeah, it was an interrogation, not a vacation. Where's Tobi?"

As if on cue, the masked man dropped down, running to her. "Saya-chan! You are safe!" the man cried happily. Then he glanced at Deidara, who had gone motionless still holding the tag.

Casually, he pried it from a reluctant-looking Deidara. "Don't worry Deidara-sempai. Tobi can get Saya-chan out!"

Sakura looked warily between the two of them. Tobi advanced near her and placed the tag on her chains. Her eyes bulged in shock when she noticed the kanji written on it.

"What the f-? Are you trying to kill me?" Sakura yelled as she backed away.

"Don't worry, yeah. I modified it so it would just affect what it touches and nothing else," Deidara mumbled, looking away. She glared at the two of them. It was time to bring the matter out into the open.

"What are you two up to?"

Even Tobi was acting guilty. He cleared his throat before hugging her. "I'm sorry, Saya-chan."

"For?" She prompted, intending to know the reason.

"This." The last thing she saw was a guilty look before her world went black.

Sakura sighed in her dark cell, wondering how long she had to remain here. She could roughly tell that it had been slightly more than a day when she woke up and Pein and Itachi had interrogated her. Oddly, it seemed as though they were conversing instead of interrogating. They did not touch her at all and Itachi did not play with her mind.

It was a little interesting that they did nothing violent. Sakura loved figuring out mysteries like this one.

She knew they did not know of her being the new jinchuuriki because she was suppressing it. However, the fact that Pein sensed it somewhere gave her a start. Had she accidentally leaked it?

The idea that she could lose control occasionally was frightening. She had always prided herself on being steady with the kyuubi inside her.

Reflecting back on Pein's words, she eventually concluded that Pein wanted her to join Akatsuki. She knew the ritual for securing the demons were faster with many, as Jiraiya had mentioned many years ago. She didn't know how he was privy to all the rough details, but Jiraiya was good at finding out things people didn't want revealed.

She also had a sneaking suspicion that Itachi would ask her to heal his eyes.

She was humming softly to herself still when the door opened again and a light switched on. Instinctively she shut her eyes, knowing that it would hurt to be exposed to light when she had been in the dark for more than one day. After a while, she slowly opened them, wishing she had chakra to numb the throbbing pain.

A figure walked over to her, keys jangling in his right hand. He crouched down and she was instantly blown away by a woody scent as he worked on removing the chains.

"I apologise for our harsh treatment," the figure rumbled. It was Pein. "But it was necessary to use these ropes on you in case you attempt to escape."

Her chains removed, Sakura _finally _felt her chakra levels return to normal. She was relieved that Pein had removed her chakra bindings. Immediately her hands proceeded to scan her injuries, working on the more serious ones.

She decided to break the silence. "I wouldn't be able to escape anyway," she muttered, staring at her injuries with a crestfallen look. She looked up at Pein, half-frightened of what she would see.

Standing over her was the most imposing man she had ever seen. His Rinnegan eyes were trained on her with an unreadable look on his face. His combat boots were black and he donned his Akatsuki cloak. In another life, Sakura would have found him good-looking, but she was just too intimidated by his abilities that she had to restrain her urge to back away from him. To her credit, she only flinched.

Then he held out a hand to her, as if to help her up.

Sakura stared at the hand in front of her eyes for a few seconds, nonplussed. Deducing that he wouldn't kill her when he needed her, she hesitantly placed her good hand in his. He pulled her up slowly and effortlessly. Much to her horror, he placed his hand on her shoulder and proceeded to help her to a chair in the middle of the room.

It was when she sat down that she noticed another figure in the room. Perched against the wall facing her, Uchiha Itachi casually observed her with his arms folded as she observed him back.

He was docked in black combat boots with pants of the same colour. His top was a navy blue shirt that was crisp and ironed, showing his lean, defined muscles at his arms. His hair was tied back.

She stared at his face, so similar to Sasuke that her heart wrenched. However, it wasn't a time to be mulling over her past as she had to focus. She looked at Pein, who had been watching her study Itachi, and decided to propel the impending unavoidable conversation. Continuing her healing session on her ribs this time, she spoke.

"You want me to join Akatsuki," she started. Pein shot her a mildly surprised look. He clearly did not expect her to start talking first.

"Yes, I am." Pein responded softly, as though not to startle her.

"And you want me to heal his eyes." Sakura's gaze moved to Itachi, shooting him a distrustful look.

Pein gave her another of his unreadable looks and replied, "Yes."

Sakura sighed as her left hand started to glow green over her three fingers, the only wound left. She had to heal in a rushed manner and with very little chakra, considering her circumstances.

"Why me?" She asked softly, looking at her fingers as she healed.

"Because you are the Godaime's apprentice. Your forte is in the medical field which we really need. You will be a good addition to the group, don't you agree?" Pein tilted his head, waiting for her answer.

Sakura tried not to panic. This was it. There was no turning back. "What makes you think I will join you?" she asked steely, though her heart was palpitating. Her eyes narrowed at Pein, hoping he'd rise to the bait.

Surprisingly, he didn't react to it. His voice was unusually calm. "I can bring back people you have lost, with their memory and soul fully intact, as if they'd never been gone."

Her escape plan flew out the window as she reeled in her shock. Sakura choked on her saliva and coughed violently, her eyes flashing with murderous intent and pumping with adrenaline. Oh, she was _mad._

Shooting out from her seat as quickly as lightning, she darted to him and simultaneously activating her doujutsu. Her chakra-induced hands straightened into slicers. She just wanted to hit him so badly until he hurt, damn the consequences. He was the reason for her pain!

To her shock, she found him still as a statue with his hands left at his sides, not moving to block her from giving him a gash at his chest area. In fact, he looked rather grim and accepting.

Who _is _the man standing before her? Why didn't he move?

"Why didn't you move?" Sakura uttered with horrified eyes. She abandoned her stance, looking at him with her yellow eyes. A quick glance to her left found a mildly surprised Itachi looking at Pein as well. It seemed as though he had also expected Pein to dodge it.

Pein coughed. A trickle of blood escaped his mouth, dribbling onto his coat as he hunched. "I deserve that," he said quietly, looking at her.

Sakura couldn't understand the man standing in front of him. Was it all an act to get her to join him? If it was, it was rather smart and cunning of him.

Being a liar for two years, hiding her true identity and her secret had given her a very accurate instinct to distinguish between liars and men who were telling the truth. She had always relied on it and it never failed her.

As of the present moment, her instinct was telling her that the man standing before her was _not_ acting. She opened her mouth to respond to him, but closed it when she realised she did not know what to say.

Sakura's thoughts were halted when Pein suddenly coughed violently. The blood leaving his mouth started to dribble at a faster pace. Alarmed, Sakura walked toward him. Pein faintly noticed her expression being a mix of concern and confusion as she gestured with her hands. "Let me heal you," she said, albeit hesitantly and reluctantly. Pein nodded in acquiescence and the kunoichi proceeded to gently press her glowing hand to his wound. Seconds ticked by as he felt her chakra entering his body to stop his bleeding and close the wound. He glanced at Itachi. He seemed to have maintained some semblance of calm as he continued watching the scene as though it was intriguing.

"Sakura," Itachi began evenly in his baritone voice.

"It's _Sakura-san_, Itachi-san," Sakura responded, irritated. Pein understood the reason behind her anger. Over the past three days, she had been interrogated, set free and captured again and been requested to join the most imposing organization that had indirectly and directly caused many deaths.

What he didn't know was that she was mostly upset that Pein did not act like an asshole. _Things would have been so much easier if he was more of an asshole, _Sakura groaned inwardly.

"We really need your services, _Sakura-san_. If you join us, you will only need to heal us and run minor missions to increase our funds." Sakura looked at the man who had been silent the whole time.

His deep-set eyes seemed to bore into her. Sakura was surprised to find his eyes had reverted back to his usual black. "I don't want to get involved," she whispered softly, as though pleading. Her emotions were in turmoil as she remembered what Pein said he had the capability to do.

However, at the same time, the inner recesses of her mind were quickly forming a plan. It was inevitable that if she said no, she would die. From her observations, Pein was still an enigma that was difficult to decipher. She'd heard he called himself a god, indicating that he probably had superegoistic tendencies. Nevertheless, this one, significant action demonstrated that he regretted killing unnecessarily and felt guilt for it.

She also knew that her entry into the Akatsuki will mean that she had access to information that shinobi countries have been dying to know of. If she earned their trust, she would undoubtedly be a good source of information for the Kazekage who would be able to take action on her behalf.

There was, however, the fact that she was the new jinchuuriki. That risk weighed on her heavily like a rain cloud on her mind.

She just had to steel herself and suppress it fully. After all, the Kyuubi had been generously compliant after his solemn transfer.

Her mind was racing with thoughts. Inwardly, she kept chanting to herself that it wouldn't be a problem. She had to reassure herself. Besides, it was either join or die. Dying would mean a risk of her losing control of the Kyuubi for all to see.

She removed her hand from Pein's chest which had become slightly warm from the healing, taking a deep breath. Then she proceeded to look him in the eye.

"I accept."

**00000**

**So now you know what Athena's power refers to. Well, it actually doesn't only mean the Kyuubi, but also her other areas of expertise, which you will see in later chapters. As you have already noticed, Sakura is a good strategist and she's smart in the medical field; she plans missions, she even created a bloodline limit for herself by altering her genetic material. **

**I really hope Pein is not too out of character! I decided to focus on the "good" aspect of him for Sakura to have more reasons besides the threats to join the group; after all, his intentions of Akatsuki were actually (in his opinion) good ones and made to stop war, la-dee-da. I think I got braindead halfway.. Hopefully it doesn't show much. I also tried to make the first part a little more lighthearted than the rest... I don't like too much angst and pain. Also, I prefer Sakura to be a resilient girl who would see the light in the darkness. Great, now I'm waxing poetic. (snorts)**

**Itachi didn't talk much because he just needed to oversee the entire thing as Pein persuaded her to join. He became really interested however.. His POV is coming soon!**

**Tell me what is your favourite pairing now with the review button! If you have any questions, please leave them in the review as well.**


	4. Kurama

**I am considering all pairings now, aaaand I have decided –what the heck, let's make this mysterious. I'm going to change the pairing to Sakura & Akatsuki and you guys can err… have a blast guessing who she'll end up with. :D **

**Summary so far: Sakura escapes from the Danzou and Root-infested Konoha. She becomes a missing nin and in turn, gets to work with two Akatsuki members, Deidara and Tobi. Her identity unknowingly revealed in an accident, she eventually ends in up Akatsuki's clutches and forced to work with them to find the Kyuubi. (Oh, the irony.)**

**00000000 **

She was in a dark, large and humid cavern, her fingers trailing the rocky surface beside her as she walked purposefully. Water dripped from odd cracks and points from the ceiling to her hair and clothes, dampening her figure but she walked on, unperturbed. She was used to the place, having been introduced to it 2 years ago. The first time she had fallen asleep as a newly-sealed jinchuuriki, she had dreamed of this same cavern and a particular nine-tailed Kyuubi, and it had resulted in a full-blown discussion. She knew it wasn't really a dream; rather, it was a visit to a part of her mind that was intrinsically linked with the kitsune's for open communication.

Her eyes were wide open, scanning the darkness for an anomaly she would find soon. Then she found it: a small, bright orange light with an odd bubbling noise reverberating softly in the distance. Her fingers left the wall beside her and she launched into a casual jog, heading in its direction.

The orange light grew brighter until she saw a large gate in the distance, with steel bars lined along both sides as if to keep someone in. Behind the cage that seemed to stretch infinitely, there was a gigantic, orange, hulking figure pacing back and forth, its tails swishing erratically as it waited impatiently for her, evidently the source for the orange light. Its chakra bubbled violently and loudly, a sign of agitation.

She stopped walking and perched herself against a tall rock not far from the gate, her arms folded in front of her. "Kurama," she said evenly, calling the fox's attention.

The imposing figure stilled in its pacing and growled, turning in her direction as it peered through the bars. He spoke, a low rumbled growl that echoed sinisterly across the cavern. "Sakura."

He continued, peering unblinkingly at her form in his crouching form. "What are you thinking, joining Akatsuki?" A low guttural growl rumbled from the demon at the last word. He truly hated the name.

Sakura shifted uneasily, knowing he would be upset about it. She pinched the tip of her nose and closed her eyes, preparing herself to launch into a heated debate. "I _was _thinking, Kurama."

The fox waited for her to continue, so she pried herself off the rock and walked closer to the gate. "If I were to reject him, you know what the consequences are. It will be increasingly dire and you will _definitely _be revealed because I cannot hold my own against them. How many of them did you sense?"

The fox growled, and Sakura suspected he was thinking of the Akatsuki he had sensed. "I sensed six… and because you agreed to join, you will be the seventh."

Sakura's eyes closed at the unpleasant reminder that she was now a member. She sighed wearily, running a hair through her pink locks.

The fox spoke again. "What are you planning to do, girl? My brethren have all been caught in that bijuu-encasing chamber, I can sense them. If you are not careful, they will find me and kill you. And our demon powers will be in the wrong hands," the demon's eyes were narrowed, waiting for a reply. He looked rather crossed with her. "Do not put Naruto's efforts to waste, Sakura."

Sakura's form stilled for a moment at the former jinchuuriki's name. There was a long period of silence. When she spoke, it sounded void and empty of feeling.

"I understand your concern, Kurama… but considering the situation, I find it advantageous to be on their side, knowing what's happening. I have been aiming to contact Gaara with my new jutsu, as you know I've been practicing just in case I need it. And now I have a reason to… to play my part as an informant," Sakura explained, walking closer to the bars as she spotted the familiar piece of paper plastered hastily on one of them.

She stared wistfully at the seal, her mind travelling momentarily to an old friend. Kurama was known to harbour a soft spot for the late Naruto. When Naruto had been in serious trouble fighting Itachi a few years ago, they made a pact to remove the seal so that the demon fox could take over his body completely when the time called for it. However, removing the seal meant that Naruto could disappear if Kurama took over his body completely for a prolonged period of time, and refused to retract himself back. It took much more than a modicum of trust for Naruto to do it. It meant that somehow… both Naruto and Kurama had become allies and friends, if possible.

Sakura would have been surprised, if not for the fact that the demon was also –in his unique way- concerned for her. It was because of Naruto that Kurama gave his word to protect, advise and cooperate with Sakura when the time called for it. The fox demon had stuck to it firmly over the past two years, giving her advice when she most needed it.

It was still the same now.

"That is true,_" _Kurama mused. "It is a great advantage to have, knowing Pein's plans. It is only dire if he knows you being a double agent. Be careful of him, girl. No matter what, he will still be suspicious of you as you were Naruto's comrade. You also entered because you had no other option. That said, I know I am in safe hands with you. You have never leaked my chakra, which brings me to my next question. Who did?"

Sakura started at the question, knowing he was probably referring to the statement Pein had made about the kyuubi being alive. She bit her lip. "I didn't leak it? Pein said he sensed something," she asked inquisitively, gazing at the demon's large eyes.

His red eyes bored into hers as he gave a firm nod. "You have not," he intoned levelly.

Sakura heaved a sigh of relief, holding a hand against the bars for support. She hadn't slipped. Pein must have made a mistake in sensing.

As if reading the kunoichi's mind, the fox spoke. "Pein does not make mistakes. He has the Rinnegan."

Sakura pondered upon his statement, frowning as her mind worked into overdrive. That meant that there really was someone with kyuubi chakra running around. However, since it was established that the other eight demon carriers had to have passed on from the fatal extraction jutsus –with the exception of Gaara- it meant that Pein must have sensed his residual chakra. However, the fox spoke again, watching her reaction.

"It is not Gaara. If it was him, Pein would not have bothered about it, since he has already attained Shukaku. He was talking about someone else."

"Who is it then?" Sakura, for the life of her, couldn't figure out what the kyuubi was talking about. She was getting increasingly irritated.

The kyuubi looked intently at Sakura, his face carefully blank. "What I am trying to say is, Sakura... That the only chakra he would be bothered about is the one harbouring mine."

Sakura's eyes widened in realization, finally understanding what he was saying. Her hands clenched into fists, willing herself not to tremble as she whispered the words that might change her life.

"Naruto… He's alive."

**00000000**

DUN DUN DUUUUUNNN! Something has finally been revealed! How will Sakura take it?

Perhaps I should elaborate more on the part about residual chakra. Gaara who had Shukaku extracted still possessed parts of Shukaku's powers. Therefore Naruto should also have Kurama's and Pein sensed it. Hence Kurama deduced that Naruto had to be alive to be using his chakra.

Oh yes, I apologise for it being short. I intended it to be a cliffy… Hope it wasn't lame or anything. Plus, I need to run some errands and it's really late now. And I'm going SHOPPING TMR! WOOHOO!

Out of curiosity, I decided to make a poll. Hit the review button if you feel like answering.

**Question: Out of these Akatsuki members, who is your favourite and why?**

**a)Pein**

**b)Tobi**

**c)Itachi**

**d)Kisame**

**e)Deidara**

**f)Sasori**

**g)Konan**

**h)Hidan**

**i)Kakuzu**

**j)Orochimaru**

**I'll tell you who my favourite is in the next chappie and the final results (if anyone does answer)! Regardless, thank you for reading you awesome reader! Yes, you. XD**


	5. Kitchen

**You guys totally blew me away with your love! Le awesome! 8 reviews for the previous chapter! I was grinning from ear to ear the whole day and skipping around happily like a girl on crack... And I think I shopped too much because of the happiness, buying almost everything I saw.**

**And now, on to the next chapter! ~flies away happily~**

**0000000 **

Sakura woke with a start, her hands gripping the white sheets tucked neatly around her. Doing a quick scan of her surroundings, she realised she was in a relatively large room, the white walls occasionally furnished with red oak to give a simple, abstract feel. A brown door lay to the left of the white bed she was currently lying in, followed by a simple table of an ash colour with a black swivel chair at the corner of the room. To her right lay a large cupboard and an empty shelf, and finally - just beside her bed – lay a white door with a swirling frosted glass design.

Sakura closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, trying to stabilise her heart rate. Recalling what Kurama had said afterwards was not pleasant at all.

"_Sakura," he intoned deeply, looking almost regretful. "I myself am unsure what Naruto has been doing these two years, not bothering to meet you. However, If you do meet him… You must be careful, because he knows who you harbour. And… although I regret to say this," he continued, his expression turning forlorn, "He may not even be _Naruto _anymore."_

_Sakura's knees had buckled under the weight of the shocking news, causing her to kneel on the rocky ground, her heart beating so loudly that she could hear it. Her hand clutched at her chest in an attempt to calm herself. She stared at him with her widened eyes, unable to answer him. A million thoughts raced through her mind at the same time, propelling her mind into utter chaos in a span of twenty seconds._

_She would be happy of the fact that he was alive, but her mind was already working through the idea and finding possible reasons of how he managed to be alive, and they weren't pleasant at all. Kurama was right in warning her. How will she react to a different Naruto? Quickly she blocked that particularly nasty train of thought. She'd handled enough drama in a day, enough _shit_, and she did _not_ want to drive herself insane. _

_Closing her eyes momentarily, she gathered the tears threatening to fall from the pools of her eyes and willed them away. It only took a few seconds before her jade eyes snapped open, her expression different this time. Sucking a deep breath, she placed a hand on the floor to propel her body up gracefully and stood before the fox demon with a hard, resolute expression. _

"_I need some time to myself," she said, her voice an epitome of calm._

_The fox nodded, and her vision swirled into darkness._

_That was when she woke up._

The girl ran through a hand through her pink locks, sighing. She really needed to meditate soon, the exercise was long overdue. Now was neither the time or place for it, recalling that she was in Akatsuki's headquarters. She wondered how she ended up in that particular room.

A very recent memory came to her then.

"_I accept." With those words, she knew her fate was sealed. It was a new, terrifying chapter in her life and she had no choice but to face it. Her face adopted a calm, albeit slightly defeatist expression, but beneath her façade lay a stricken Sakura desperately trying to quell her panic._

_The orange-haired man gave her another of his unreadable, intense looks with his violet eyes and nodded, as if it was to be expected. He turned away from her form, placing his hands clasped behind his back as he began to walk._

"_Follow me," he instructed calmly. Itachi, who noticed his leader's movements, proceeded to walk out of the room, knowing his dismissal when he saw it. He shot her an intense gaze before he went out the door. _

_Sakura had a feeling that out of all the organization's members, she especially had to tiptoe around these two men who never showed their emotions on their sleeve. It was difficult to know what they were thinking._

_She couldn't help but feel extremely screwed. _

_Nausea overcame her, wracking her body with cold chills. Sakura fought the dizziness, swallowing her saliva as she followed the man at a respectable distance._

_He led her down a white corridor, passing by rows and rows of doors until he came to a stop at the end. A large oak door stood tall, and Sakura shivered as a foreboding feeling ran down her spine. _

_Pein gave her a quick glance before pressing his hands against the doorknob. A resounding click echoed through the silent corridor before the door slid open with a loud creak. "This is the-"_

_Her world suddenly started to spin precariously. Sakura's eyes rolled before she even noticed anything in the room, proceeding to topple over in a dead faint. Acting based on instinct, Pein's arms shot out towards her to catch her body before she landed unceremoniously on the ground._

"_-kitchen," he continued flatly. _

_Her body refused to obey her; the dizziness was overwhelming, and Sakura only vaguely noticed Pein scooping her into his arms with a weary sigh, taking a long look at her features as her world slowly faded into black._

Sakura's hands flew up to her mouth to stifle a scream. He had _carried _her! An ugly croak tore from her raspy throat, an equal combination of shock, confusion and fear. The man was a sensor and one of the best to be able to track and detect chakra from far away. And now, her stupid body reactions had allowed him to touch her.

She really hoped her backup –an extremely strong chakra-sealing jutsu concocted by her- had worked, because if it hadn't, there would be _no_ way the Kyuubi's chakra would be able to escape him. That said, the fact that she still _was _alive meant that he hadn't sensed it.

The kunoichi calmed considerably and decided it was time for her to explore the room. Sliding her legs across the bed quite sluggishly –and noticing to her horror that her kunoichi outfit was gone, leaving her in a simple white sleeveless nightgown – she almost screamed again. Mortified, she peeked at her bindings and underwear, noting with relief they were still intact, though slightly bloody from the events in the past three or four days. Her hands were caked with grime and dried blood. Trying not to think about who changed her outfit, she headed hastily for the white door and slammed it open, suspecting it was a toilet and a bathroom.

A lavish bathroom it was. Though slightly small, it consisted of a shower, a tub, a sink and a toilet. She proceeded to stare above the sink where a large mirror stood, stretching all the way to the top where it stopped at the ceiling.

The girl before her was definitely skinnier, wearier-looking and dirtier. There were brown, blue and black bruises dotting her arms, her face was caked with grime while her hands and fingernails were brown with dried blood.

With that assessment done, Sakura decided she definitely needed a shower.

000000

It was thirty, long minutes until she came out of the shower, smelling significantly more pleasant and having healed most bruises. She was already feeling much better and more capable of handling the precarious situation she had landed herself in. Darting out of the bathroom, she reached for her pack lying innocently on the table, attacking it with fervour until she found her essentials. Putting her kunoichi outfit on – a black sleeveless tank top and her black skirt and shorts – she braided her long hair into a plait, finding her pink hair weird now that she had no reason to continue her Saya appearance. In fact, it was rather unpleasant. Seeing her pink hair and her jade eyes in the mirror of the bathroom reminded her of how much Sakura had lost, and she just wanted to remain in the shell that was Saya.

It was unfortunate, but she would deal with it. Taking a deep breath, the roseate-haired girl turned the doorknob of the oak door and opened it.

Only to come face to face with a familiar blonde nin.

Her blood had started rushing almost angrily in her veins and her left eye twitched. "You." A guttural growl resounded from her throat as she stalked closer.

The blonde nin swallowed nervously, his hands placed in a placating gesture as he backed away from her. "Hey… Sakura huh?" he laughed nervously. "Listen, I can explain, yeah!"

"You have one minute," she hissed through gritted teeth, glaring daggers at him.

"I didn't say anything! Tobi brought it up with Leader the same week we saw you exposed without your henge," his words came out in a rush as he looked at her threatening form.

He knew he was definitely going to be castrated if he were to reveal his thoughts about her at that moment. When he had seen her, half-buried in the pile of rubble he eventually knew she'd caused afterwards, his heart had raced for so many reasons. The real Saya or Sakura- was ethereal. Her hair was a shocking pink, her skin was slightly fairer and her lips were a pretty shade of pink. For a long moment, he had stood there, dumbstruck, while Tobi had fallen silent as well.

The second reason came soon after when he discovered she had made the crater. With her bare hands. That single, slender-looking fist could cause such a bang and he had never known about it until much later.

It was also exhilarating to know that the expressions of the real Saya –or Sakura- totally fit his idea of art. There she stood, looking calm when she opened the door until she saw him. In a split second she was filled to the brim with anger and killing intent, her green eyes practically spitting fire as she prepared to explode on the thing closest to her which was him.

Overall, he decided he preferred her with pink hair and jade eyes to the boring black hair and brown eyes.

He noted with disappointment that she finally seemed to calm, then realised it was supposed to be that way unless he wanted to lose his life.

The object of his thoughts then spoke, her feminine voice echoing through the hallway. "My henge deactivated?" she asked, a worried frown marring her perfect features.

Holy shit.

'Did I just think she was _perfect_?' Deidara thought exasperatedly, mentally slapping a hand to his forehead. Kisame was right when he said he truly was a glutton for punishment. He was fucking doomed.

Outwardly, his expression did not seem to waver. He raised his eyebrows and grinned. "You were dead to the world and out of chakra, yeah. Of course your henge stopped," he explained, folding his arms as he watched the kunoichi, amused.

A myriad of emotions – confusion, fear, panic and shock – reflected on her face, and Deidara winced, knowing he was partly at fault for them. After all, it was Tobi's damn mouth that got her into this hellish organization. Tobi was his partner and he should have tried to keep his partner's mouth shut.

"I'm really sorry, yeah. Tobi kind of rattled on you because he thought you will be useful. I was actually kind of shocked seeing your face in the bingo book, yeah. Hokage's apprentice? Never expected it. Plus the amount of bounty for your head… " he let out a whistle. "Your old village wants you bad."

The girl became forlorn at the mention of her village, so he decided to change the subject. "Say, you want a tour?" he asked.

Visibly perking up, she nodded, shooting him a grateful, dimpled smile which made Deidara's insides lurch. "I am famished. Just show me where the kitchen is," she replied evenly, wincing as her stomach growled.

Deidara snorted. "You sure you're not a man?"

Two seconds later, there was a big dent in the wall and a man slumped in an undignified heap below it, nursing his head as his attacker stalked off, intent on finding the kitchen on her own.

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**And I know you know you are dying to know who changed her clothes. (I am dying to know too. LOL.) Next chapter includes a conversation with the rest of the members.**

**Let me know your thoughts (or squeals, if there are any) in the review!**

**Here's another interesting poll! **

**Which Sakura pairing has produced the BEST STORY in naruto fanfiction?**

**ItaSaku**

**HidanSaku**

**DeiSaku**

**ZetsuSaku**

**PeinSaku**

**KisameSaku**

**OrochimaruSaku (err…)**

**KakaSaku**

**SasuSaku**

**NaruSaku**

**ShikaSaku**

**SaiSaku**

**I fiercely love one of those pairings because of two particular authors that have made this pairing come to life. They are Silvershine and Leafygirl, the first two authors I absolutely love. Anyway, results will be revealed in the next chappie! Till then, adieu, my lovelies. Thanks for reading! **

**Star**

**P.S. I can't believe it's already chapter 5. Yay!**


	6. Deidara

**I swear, when I woke up this morning and checked my inbox and saw a whopping 12 reviews- I just – ARGH. You guys totally made my day. And again, I feel like updating. You guys are pure awesomeness.**

**And the winning pairing is… ITASAKU! ****That pretty much sums it up! ****YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING, ALL OF YOU.**** I have so much to read since you guys recommended stuff that I haven't read yet! And, because you guys recommended so much, I shall gladly recommend one! Or two.**

**Anyway, onward with the story! My apologies for the colourful vulgarities you are going to read.**

**000000 CHAPTER HAS BEEN EDITED. IT IS MORE ENJOYABLE NOW. I think. Enjoy!**

It was yet another rainy day where the Akatsuki headquarters were located. The shower poured mercilessly against the frosted glass windows, making a continual rhythmic, tapping sound in the spacious confines of the kitchen. A large, blue-skinned man hovered over a stove, stirring its contents every few seconds while two men sat at a dining table not too far away with cards in their hands. Another man sat with them, hands clasped casually on the table as he watched the game in procession.

It was a matter of seconds when one of the men with the cards spoke, slamming a set of cards on the table enthusiastically.

"Full fucking house. Eat my shit, Tobi," the silver-haired man cackled with mirth, his violet eyes shimmering with excitement.

The masked man proceeded to place his cards on the table, catching his opponent's attention as he bounced happily in his seat. "Tobi got Royal Flush! Tobi wins and Hidan is the loser!"

Hidan stood abruptly, knocking his chair onto the floor as he stared at the cards, his expression suddenly transforming into one of anger as he let loose a snarl. "Fuck, if that isn't the shittiest fuck I've ever seen! How the fuck did you get a fucking royal flush, plastic face?" He spat, eyes dripping with venom and promising pain. Sensing trouble, Itachi abandoned his seat next to Hidan with a weary sigh, opting to help Kisame with laying out the cutleries for lunch.

To the masked man's credit, Tobi didn't even flinch. Instead, he stood up and extended his palm. "Tobi wants his thousand Ryo now," he singsonged, bouncing on his heels.

The raging Akatsuki had already made a lunge for his scythe when the door to the kitchen slammed open, revealing a cleaner, presentable, familiar kunoichi than the one they saw yesterday. Her hair was in a loose French plait tucked to one side, the shorter stray hairs framing her face. Her expression was guarded as she scanned the group with her cool jade eyes, but held a trace of annoyance as if something had happened beforehand that she wasn't happy about. She seemed quite unruffled by the way Itachi watched her unblinkingly and Hidan's leer, walking towards the fridge.

Then someone spoke, halting her step mid-stride. It was the blue-skinned man -Kisame was his name, she remembered. His back was turned to her as he scooped out broth from the stove onto a large bowl. "Come to eat, kunoichi?"

Sakura was baffled that he was the first to acknowledge her presence. For a moment she stood still, debating how to respond when the man beside Kisame spoke up in a smooth voice. "Please, sit." She fixed her gaze on the figure and realised it was Itachi who had spoken. His onyx eyes bore into her jade ones, unblinking as he gestured to the dining table with his hand, before proceeding to gather the cutleries in the drawer.

Sakura's eyes widened as she fought the urge to pinch herself to test if it was a dream. Did he just speak… _politely? _She had never thought that he would be so well-mannered. It was so unlike his younger brother, whose manners were the equivalent of a vulture's. After a couple of years attempting to bring him back to Konoha, Team Seven had decided to let him be. He had never failed to try to kill her in every attempt, and with every attempt, her affection for him had dwindled to the point of nonexistence.

Sakura stopped her mellow thoughts, focusing on the black-haired man before her. It wasn't the time to be mulling over the past. The man before her now stood tall, with a regal air about him as he smirked as if he knew what she was thinking.

"Don't listen to that fucking bastard, yeah. That guy will give you a run for your money when it comes to fake politeness," Deidara suddenly walked in, looking less worse for wear. He had managed to straighten out his black shirt and blue pants and removed most of the rubble stuck to his clothes. However, he was still sporting a nasty bruise on the top right side of his forehead, wincing occasionally as he walked to her.

"Let me heal t-"

"Save it for later. You need to eat, yeah," he remarked simply, sparing her a concerned glance before grabbing her arm, guiding her to the dining table. It took every bit of energy in Sakura to fight the urge to shiver at the contact his warm hand made with her arm. Noticing the dining table, she scowled as she saw Tobi and Hidan still standing and staring, Hidan eyeing her with scythe in hand.

His beady eyes suddenly narrowed upon noticing the arm contact between the two. "So, this must be your bitch, huh? And all this time I thought you were fucking male pussies behind our backs," he sneered.

Sakura could practically feel Deidara's arm tensing at that statement as he resolved his grip on her. Sakura vaguely noticed Kisame and Itachi watching the scene with mild amusement, as if it happened every day. Tobi was standing opposite her, oddly silent, his rapt attention focused on the two individuals as if waiting for an explosion to occur.

It was then that their Leader strolled in, noticing the tense atmosphere and the individuals.

The roseate-haired kunoichi immediately stiffened, willing her racing heart to calm as she remembered a particular memory regarding the enigmatic individual. Quickly, she averted her gaze hoping he wouldn't notice her.

Fortunately for her, his eyes only focused on Hidan, narrowed slightly in a silent warning as if he knew who was responsible for the current tension. Sakura could not help but notice that the infuriating, foul-mouthed man was actually backing down from Pein's gaze, his arms held up in a defeatist gesture. The silver-haired man grabbed his scythe and proceeded to stalk out of the kitchen, muttering a series of expletives and something about "Jashin-sama".

The tension abated considerably, and the rest of the members went about their business as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred. Then again, maybe these sort of things occurred every day. Sakura sighed as she sat down at the end next to Deidara – once again in disbelief that she is actually _sitting down _having lunch _with Akatsuki members_ – and practically started to salivate, upon noticing the abundance of food prepared on the table.

"Nice of you to join us, Leader. You _hardly _do," Kisame said, grinning wolfishly at her for some odd reason that Sakura hadn't the strength to figure out. He then proceeded to take a seat opposite hers. Beside him was a quiet Itachi, who had already begun eating, his attention focused solely on the food before him. Tobi had taken his share of his food and disappeared, proclaiming cheerily that he preferred to eat in his room, and Sakura decided to file away the piece of information for later when she confronted him on his tattling mouth.

And of course, beside the calm Itachi was an equally composed Leader, piling food onto his rice bowl, his deep set gaze focused on the rice bowl. Her jade eyes sparkled with curiosity as she studied his face intently, noticing his hair was similar to Naruto's, except it was a russet colour. His headband was missing; she had noticed the others had not worn them as well when they were in the headquarters. He had huge, violet irises that seemed capable of drawing anyone in and calling everyone's attention on him. There was something interesting about him that Sakura couldn't put a finger on. Maybe it was his attitude or his manner-of-speaking, or his whole persona, but whatever it was, it was gripping and intensely so. He was similar to Itachi and Sasuke in a way, with his brooding personality that warranted much curiosity from individuals like herself. Yet, he was slightly different. She just didn't know_ what_ was.

Sakura's thoughts were cut short when he spoke, jumping out of her seat slightly.

"Sakura. Eat." His voice snapped her out of her musings and she felt a flush creeping up her neck. Obviously, he knew she'd been watching him. The order was enough to spring her into action as she took her chopsticks and snapped them –and realizing, to her surprise, that Deidara had piled food onto her bowl enough to feed three people. He gave her a lopsided grin, gesturing at her food.

"Just eat, yeah. You haven't eaten for three days," he said, before proceeding to focus on his meal.

When Sakura had ascertained that all of them stopped watching her, she proceeded to take a bite of the fish.

And tasted the most delicious thing in her entire life. The flesh was soft and slightly chewy, perfectly cooked as she savoured it slowly and fought the urge to squeal in delight. Then her 3 days' worth of hunger overcame her and she started gulping her food down at a faster rate, ignoring the stares of mild amusement from the other members who clearly knew she had lost all vestiges of feeling awkward with them, at least temporarily.

When she was done eating, she looked up only to find only two people left in the kitchen. To her dismay, she found that she had barely noticed Itachi, Kisame and Pein leaving in her eating frenzy. The plates had been cleared with the exception of hers, the table spick and span and a very absorbed Deidara sat beside her, his hands molding what seemed like a clay figurine.

He glanced at her from the corner of his eyes as he continued his ministrations on the figurine. "Took you long enough, yeah," he joked, smirking.

Sakura grabbed her water and gulped it down in one sitting. Once done, she stood up with shaky legs and hobbled not so gracefully to the sink, dishes in tow. "How long did I take?" she asked, her voice raspy and hoarse from disuse.

"Long enough for them to leave." She could practically feel Deidara's usual trademark grin burning into her back, thanking Fate or whichever entity was out there that she had someone to talk to even if she was forced into the most hellish terrorist organization in the world. Washing her dishes in a rhythmic motion, she remembered her partnership with Deidara and Tobi back when she was Saya.

It was safe to say that Deidara was extremely taken aback when Sakura spoke. "I'm sorry." Stopping his clay-molding, the blonde nin turned to face her back, which hadn't turned while she continued her dishwashing.

"Care to explain that, hmm?" he asked curiously, and noticed her dishwashing was done when she placed them onto the rack above the sink. Letting loose a small sigh, the kunoichi turned to face him, a genuine expression of regret in her face. She raked her hands through her hair and removed the hairband, opting to redo her French plait as she answered him.

"I'm sorry for lying about my identity, about Saya and everything. You know I had to… I mean, a lot of missing nins do it," she muttered, choosing not to look at him but the floor, her hands still in her rosette locks as she deftly plaited it.

Deidara tried not to grin even wider but failed. Unbeknownst to Sakura, his half-lidded gaze was inevitably drawn to her tangled locks. For a long while Sakura waited for his response, but he was unable to do so.

He suddenly felt a little out of breath.

Upon receiving nothing, Sakura shot him a deathly glare -he seemed to be in his own world - and stalked off for the kitchen exit, her wavy hair left untied led, her hair swishing in her loose plait as she turned and headed for the kitchen exit. "Forget I said that, you stubborn, incorrigible, egoistic bas-"

His hand gripped her upper arm and turned her to face him. Her face was in his chest before she realised it was a half-embrace. Immediately she flushed, inhaling his unique, masculine scent as he whispered in her ear in an incredibly low voice.

"Apology accepted."

Sakura's breath ran out of her body with a loud whoosh. Her traitorous knees threatened to buckle all of a sudden.

She knew, without a doubt, that things were going to get _even more _complicated in her life.

Promptly letting go of her, Deidara walked off, sitting back down at the table as if nothing happened, leaving Sakura feeling slightly odd. After a moment or two, the object of her thoughts cleared his throat. "Leader wants to talk to you, by the way. He's waiting outside your room."

Choosing self-preservation over mannerisms, Sakura all but fled the room. She ran as fast as her legs could carry her, breaking into an all-out sprint as her mind whirled into one hazy, fuzzy mess. Dimly, she realised she shouldn't be running in corridors.

_To hell with it all_, her inner self snarled, livid that her situation had possibly turned out so complicated. She stopped eventually at her door, out of breath and feeling extremely disgruntled. Muttering to herself about "annoying men", she opened the door and entered, slumping her body against the door wearily as she closed her eyes. Finally, she was all alone and had peace to herself. She had time to think.

However, fate had its way of making things complicated, which was why the Leader of the group stood in the room before her, watching her exasperated expression with a slightly curious glint in his eyes.

00000

**I have got to say, I was laughing really hard when I typed this. This is the funniest, most awkward scene ever, LOL. It can never get more awkward than this. Lunch with the Akatsuki. Weird or what? I didn't know what to do so I let my fingers do the talking, if you know what I mean. Tried my best to make it believable, and if it wasn't I can edit it if you are not satisfied. **

**Sorry it's a filler, but I inserted some fluff. A few people wanted some fluff and I thought I already included in the previous chapter. Obviously not enough, hehe. I hope it's good fluff here. If not, please let me know. Also, this chapter is rushed. I had to shop for my baby sister's bday celebration tmr. I'm sorry D:**

**Let me know what you think! Also, I have another poll!**

**Which is the most hilarious pairing have you guys ever read?**

_**Please REVIEW! I love your reviews, they keep me going. :D Regardless, thanks for reading and I hope this chapter is to your expectations. **_

_**Star**_


	7. Pein

**Hey Awesomes! (Yeah I decided to call you readers Awesomes because you guys ARE awesome) I'm back with a new chapter! I'm quite pleased by this chapter, but if something's amiss, please let me know. That said, here are some people I want to shout out to:**

**Poll Results: Well... everyone's suggestion was different. Though I liked the Killer Bee X Kisame idea. It sounds hilarious already just thinking about it. XD**

**Anyway, without further ado, chapter 7 is here. Enjoy!**

00000

"Sakura-san." An even voice interrupted her in her thoughts, causing her to jump. Mustering every ounce of effort in her body, Sakura opened her eyes to look at the person who had caught her panicked frenzy.

And bit her lip to hold back a groan. She just couldn't get a break, could she?

Standing opposite her with his hands clasped behind his back, decked in his onyx shinobi pants and long-sleeved shirt, was the leader of the organization himself. He peered at her, his silver-indigo eyes questioning.

Sakura had a fleeting thought, wishing he would just disappear along with the rest of the Akatsuki. An irrational thought, but she bore it all the same, because she was just so, _so_ _overwhelmed._

Within three days, she had been kidnapped by Akatsuki and forced to work with them due to her identity slip-up three months earlier –which she had not known at all at the time. Simultaneously, she had succumbed herself to being at continual risk of being exposed for her _other _identity – the new jinchuuriki. While Pein had a false lead (one that Kurama had established earlier to be Naruto's chakra), she could never be too careful by concealing the kyuubi's own. She was taking a large, large gamble by working, living and _breathing _with Akatsuki – it would be a matter of time before any of them found out, Sakura knew.

However, finding the kyuubi later was better than finding it now, in Sakura's opinion, which was why she had to agree. Pein would have never taken no as an answer. If she'd said no, she would be dead by now with the kyuubi unleashed and destroying Akatsuki or getting caught and subsequently being extracted and that would be the end of the nations as she knew it.

So here she was, in her new room in the Akatsuki's headquarters, contemplating the inevitable fate that would befall her with a grim expression, forgetting everything else that had occurred over the past few days and the man standing before her.

"Sakura-san," the Leader called again, snapping her out of her thoughts. "I understand that these past few days must have been difficult, but I hope you will… recover. Quickly," he added evenly, his tone betraying no emotion but professionalism.

It took some time for the girl to respond. She had rushed into the room in a frenzy as though escaping something, and whatever it was she was thinking about had made her features contort into a slightly forlorn look for a split second, before masking it with ease as though she had had much practice.

It wasn't surprising. She had been a missing nin for two years, and being able to mask emotions came as an unintended set of skills. However, so was Pein. If any common man or woman had been conversing in his place, they wouldn't have noticed the slightly sad look crossing her features as he did.

A few pink strands of hair wisped in front of the girl's face and she brushed them off unhurriedly. Her gaze seemed devoid of emotion as she spoke.

"I understand… Leade-"

"It is not necessary to call me that," the man responded automatically, and was slightly pleased to notice a surprised look crossing her features. However, he did not show it, opting to speak in an even tone, though slightly softer this time. "I understand that you will have a hard time integrating with us, and hence I only hope you will give your best effort on your part as we will give ours. Such was the reason I ate lunch today with you and the rest-" at this, Sakura made a slight choking sound, but he went on, apparently having not noticed it, "-and I am now offering answers to _any _questions you harbor, so you can learn more about the team you are joining."

Sakura could do nothing but nod dumbly. He had just offered to answer any of her questions. She was certain he had the traits of a good leader, but what shocked her more was his lack of tyrannical set of skills to control the group.

It appeared as though they really worked as a team. She was utterly blown over and confused at the same time.

So, it wasn't surprising when she decided to ask the question that was foremost on her mind.

"Why did you form Akatsuki?"

And so, the conversation between the Leader and his newest recruit began.

0000000000

In a matter of fifteen minutes, Pein had summarized his theory, or rather goal, of achieving peace with the tailed beasts with a condensed version of his history. He had to give it to Sakura for remaining silent throughout his whole explanation. She had made no outward reaction when he had dished out his theory of attaining peace with the demons gathered and had not even flinched.

Truthfully, he had been worried that she would make an outright declaration that she disagreed with his goal and would not work with him. He would have to resort to his other unpleasant methods of recruitment, and although it was necessary, he hated having to do it.

Therefore, he was even doubly surprised when she spoke after being given a few minutes to digest it.

"I know what happened to Kakuzu; he was killed by one of my sensei, Sarutobi Asuma. And I killed Sasori," she gave a smug smile of satisfaction, uncaring that Pein was watching her. If she had studied his face, she would've noticed something akin to an amused smirk on his face. "But what happened to the other two? If I recall correctly, there was a plantlike man associated with intelligence gathering and a female member."

Sakura looked at the man, noticing his posture had stiffened as though the question had hurt him. A look of despair and sadness crossed his features so quickly and Sakura would not have noticed it if she had blinked, and the mask of nonchalance was in place once more.

He seemed to hesitate in answering, and Sakura couldn't help but grow more curious. She definitely had broached a sensitive topic. If she recalled correctly, the late Tsunade had briefly referred to the female Akatsuki member as Pein's partner, but she wasn't so sure, given that she had been ranting about him in a drunken stupor. A brief feeling of nostalgia overwhelmed her and Sakura struggled to keep it at bay. Tsunade was gone, and Sakura knew her shishou wouldn't want her to dwell on the past when there was so much responsibility on her shoulders now, and doing so would only cause more pain.

"Zetsu was incapacitated on a mission… And the female member, Konan, was low on chakra after the 8-tailed demon extraction…" Pein trailed off, as though hesitant to explain. "She was unable to defend herself when Sand shinobi found her in one of our bases alone. She was killed."

Sakura knew an end to the topic at hand when she heard one. She decided to grill Deidara on it later, but remembered what had happened earlier and froze the thought. It was one of those _Really Bad Ideas _to talk to a guy who just proved he had the hots on her. She tucked away the topic at the moment quickly, noticing Pein was watching her expectantly for her next question.

"I have another question."

"Ask away," he said softly, his gaze on hers.

"Who is Tobi and why does he have the Sharingan?" Sakura blurted, and noticing Pein's shocked stare –which of course, was quickly masked again. _Okay_, Sakura thought. _Maybe I was too forward with that one. _

Sakura tensed as the orange-haired man suddenly walked closer to her, his hands hung loosely at his sides. As he came even closer, Sakura instinctively backed away with widened eyes, warning bells ringing in her head as she held her hands in front of her in a defensive and placating gesture.

Then she noticed his hands coming together to form a series of seals and the room glowed yellow. It was a soundproof jutsu, and Sakura almost hyperventilated at what he planned to do.

_Please don't kill me, please don't kill me, please don't kill-_

His body exuded warmth in front of her as he placed a hand on the door to support his weight, and proceeded to lean in toward her face. For a moment, Sakura stared, all nonchalance forgotten, her lips quivered in a _different_ kind of fear.

Then he turned his head slightly, his mouth hovering near her ear instead.

Sakura inhaled his woodsy scent, feeling strangely dizzy and her thoughts went along the line of _what the hell is happening _as he opened his mouth for the softest of whispers.

"That is none of your concern, and I suggest it stays that way." Blood rushed from her face instantly, and she knew Tobi was one huge threat to her even without Pein having to say it clearly.

"Why?" Sakura found herself whispering as well, her gaze riveted to the long line of piercings on his ear. Her heart was thudding furiously like a war drum, and she hoped dearly that he couldn't hear it. His breath warmed her ear as he spoke, making her jump slightly.

"Just do it." With that, the leader pulled back from her, his piercing gaze in place. Sakura felt relief washing over her as she regained her personal space. Gathering her wits about her, she cleared her throat.

"If he's so untrustworthy, why did you include him in your group?" She arched an eyebrow at him curiously, waiting for his response.

"Because it is better to have him with us than against us," he responded easily, his Rinnegan eyes boring into her jade ones. For a moment, they simply stared at each other, waiting for the other to respond and the other to elaborate. Nobody moved.

Then came the knock at the door, making Sakura realize belatedly that she had been staring for too long… and so did he.

"Kunoichi, open up!"

The tension defused in the same instant, and Sakura turned to open the door, eager for the conversation to be over. Pein probably felt the same, judging by his hands in his pockets and his usual mask in place. Sakura had to marvel at the way he quickly changed his expression from one of interest to indifference. She was nowhere near that level.

The door opened to reveal a grinning Kisame with his infamous Samehada strapped to his back, holding what seemed to be a basket of apples. He scanned her room, noticing the orange-haired man and grinned even wider, revealing sharp teeth.

"Kunoichi,-"

"It's Sakura!" The girl bellowed frustratedly, annoyed at his teasing. It felt slightly odd that Kisame, the man who craved and itched for a fight, and a dangerous man (or fish) to boot, was currently _teasing _her.

She still couldn't internalize lunchtime that day. It felt so… so… _normal. _As though they were normal people.

_They are normal people. Or rather, they used to be, _her inner Sakura mused.

She watched Kisame warily, but it was hard to take the man seriously when he was grinning with a basket of apples in tow.

"Fine, let's settle for a compromise. Pinky, then?" he replied in a cheerful tone.

Sakura fought the urge to smile back, and retorted with a scowl. "Fine. By all means, _fishface._"

She was taken aback when the man threw his head back and gave a deep, booming laugh, his eyes seeming to twinkle. "My, my, Pinky's got some guts and a sense of humour," he said, impressed. Then as though remembering why he had visited, his expression changed to one of raw excitement.

"You see, Leader here has suggested you spar with us a little bit, to see who you work with best," he grinned happily, his large hand coming to clap her shoulder. Strangely enough, she did not feel bothered by the contact.

Instead, the girl spared the enigmatic leader a sharp look. He simply gazed at her, unmoving, his face betraying nothing.

Kisame carried on, not noticing the silent exchange. "The rest of them are waiting at the training grounds for you and since I'm the best-mannered out of all of them, I offered to get you m'self," he winked at her.

His attitude was infectious and Sakura could not help but thaw towards him slightly. Living with the Akatsuki in only one day had already showed aspects of them she'd never known, and maybe, just _maybe_, there was some good in everyone.

Deciding to make the best of things, the pink-haired kunoichi extended a hand.

"I think we haven't been introduced to each other formally," she said with a dimpled smile. "My name is Sakura. What's yours?"

**0000**

**I have got to say this first. Asuma was NOT killed by Hidan. So she harbours no ill will (generally) to any of them. She did not fight Deidara, so she had no trouble adjusting and working with him as a missing nin for the past two years.**

**And I totally love Pein's piercings. I just had to include it in this chapter. His piercings are too sexy for them to NOT be mentioned, ehehe.**

**AND I HAVE A... (Drumroll)...**

**NEW POLL: ****Who is hotter- Pein or Deidara? **

_**And don't you just love the image of Kisame holding a basket of apples? If you do, hit **__**the review button below! :D**_


	8. Betting

**Without further ado, chapter 8 everybody. Enjoy.**

**0000000 This chapter has been edited. Slightly. Lol. Enjoy.**

Sakura could do nothing but stare at the blue nin with a slightly dumbfounded expression as he prattled on excitedly about the spar, walking with almost a bounce in his steps beside her.

"Well, Pinky, I can tell you that the purpose of Leader's suggestion of a spar is actually five percent deciding your team… and ninety-five percent of seeing your ass handed over to the other members on a platter. Technically, you're already guaranteed on my team since you'll be healing Itachi's eyes-"

"My ass handed over?" Sakura interrupted, stopping her movements as her eyes narrowed at his statement.

The Mist nin grinned, his teeth looking almost feral. "Actually, it wasn't me who said that. It was Hidan. I'm actually banking on you winning. It's a darn huge bet so you better not disappoint me," he said, and proceeded to chuckle upon noticing her shocked face.

Wait a minute… He'd bet on _her? _

Seeing that the girl had a slight amount of confusion on her face, he decided to explain further. "Well, Pinky, you may look like a small little thing and your hands are tiny-"at this, the girl gave an indignant scoff, ready to retort, but he cut her off, "-but, looks aren't everything, as I've learnt. I bet you got some stuff hidden up your sleeve. And you're not a wanted missing nin for nothing, know what I mean?"

Sakura nodded in agreement; she knew firsthand not to underestimate any shinobi. It was wiser to overestimate than underestimate, in any case.

"Plus," he grinned, leaning closer so he could whisper in her ear, "It's nice to just contend against everything that asswipe Hidan says. And, seeing as Pein-leader had _compleeeete_ faith in you, I'd thought I'd do the same."

Sakura chose to ignore the last statement, giving an eye roll as they continued their walk, which had led to a slow hike upward to a hall. Yellow lights adorned the ceiling in a classy manner and the pink-haired nin couldn't help but marvel silently at the architecture, sighing appreciatively. It was sheer splendor. For a moment, she felt as though she was somewhere else. Somewhere more beautiful and peaceful.

"Seeing that this hall is extremely huge and gorgeous, I'm guessing this is the entrance hall?" she piped up, arching an eyebrow curiously at the man beside her. Her eyes shone with appreciation as she scanned the hall, which had, oddly enough, a few couches to lounge in, a long oval table and a pool table.

"You got that right, pinky. It's a pretty mean entrance hall, don't you think?" he responded, giving a wide smile, baring his sharp teeth.

Sakura jumped slightly when she saw his razor teeth. It made her feel slightly unsettled. "You have got to stop smiling too widely," she muttered and looked away. Running a hand through her hair, she took her hairband and started to tie it up in a classic bun.

Kisame's shoulders bobbed up and down in laughter as he snickered. "What can I say, kunoichi? I love showing my teeth."

"Smile at me one more time like that and I'm going to saw your teeth one day, Seabass."

"Try me," he smirked, and the conversation ended abruptly when they opened the entrance doors, she was greeted by a large clearing. It looked like a training ground and probably was, seeing as to how Tobi and a shirtless Deidara were sparring across the clearing.

"Pein made a clearing of the entrance, so it'll be difficult for those annoying enemy nins to infiltrate into the building- though, I think it'll be quite stupid if they snuck in via the front entrance," Kisame explained, upon seeing her scrutinizing the field. "An added bonus is that it makes an awesome training ground."

"I see." It was all Sakura could say as she watched the spectacle in front of her. Not too far from her, Deidara and Tobi were engaged in a basic taijutsu spar, throwing kicks and punches that were too fast for her to catch. The blonde artist's face was slicked with sweat even though the atmosphere in Amegakure was chilly, and muscles rippled in his upper body visibly as he moved to counter Tobi's punches and kicks. A bead of sweat trickled from his forehead, down to his jaw, where it fell onto his chiseled torso and travelled downwards and-

Okay, maybe it was time to stop staring. Sakura's eyes snapped away from the fight before her and noticed her companion had walked a good ten feet ahead of her and was watching her with a bemused expression.

"You coming, kunoichi?"

"Yeah, yeah," she muttered as she trudged along with him to the large tree at a corner of the clearing that sheltered a bored-looking Hidan and an indifferent Itachi. The silver haired man was sitting cross-legged on the ground, his scythe placed lying down next to his form. He gave her a leer as she advanced closer, raking in her form and Sakura had to fight the strong urge to punch the leer out of his face. The Uchiha was leaning against the tree, his arms folded as he watched her impassively, giving her and Kisame a slight nod in acknowledgement.

Kisame sat down next to the standing Itachi, opting to lean against the tree trunk as he watched the fight. For a moment, Sakura stood rooted to the spot, unsure of where to proceed until an apple came flying through the air to her. Instinct took over and she caught it with one hand. Her eyes flew to Kisame's.

"Aren't you gonna sit?" Kisame raised an eyebrow as he took a large bite of the apple in his hand with a loud crunch.

Sighing imperceptibly, the rosette-haired nin sat down next to him, taking a reluctant bite of her apple as she hid her discomfort. It was then that Hidan turned behind to look at her and the Mist nin.

He grinned, his eyes shining with excitement. "Sharkface, let's double the money on this one."

The blue-skinned man stiffened, his eyes suddenly cold and calculating as his eyes shot to her in an appraising look for a second. Sakura's jaw tensed visibly as she noticed Itachi looking in on the scene with a rather curious look on his face.

As though sensing Itachi's stare, Kisame turned to Itachi for a brief glance before focusing on Hidan once more. "We're betting on Sakura," he explained with a grin. "You know, if she wins or loses."

"Must you tell everyone?" Sakura said through gritted teeth as she saw Itachi's smirk, his gaze steady on her.

"Fuck yes! It's going to be majorly awesome," Hidan's eyes were bright with glee as though he was already sure she would lose and he would win the money.

Sakura was just about to interject when Deidara and Tobi entered the fray. "What's going on, yeah?" Deidara asked, his blue eyes curious as he held a towel to his neck.

"Nothing-" Sakura started, but Kisame had already beaten her to it.

"Betting on Pinky. And in answer to your question, Hidan, I agree for a double."

"One more _word, _Seabass, and I'll-"

"Seabass? _Seabass? _Jashin-sama, that is priceless! That's one fucking awesome nickname!" Hidan laughed, his body shaking with mirth.

"Wait a minute, yeah. Who is she fighting anyway?" Deidara cut in, his eyes narrowed.

Silence reigned across the clearing until Tobi piped up.

"Weeell, Tobi thinks Deidara-sempai fighting Sakura will be a bad idea, because Deidara-sempai likes her too much." At this, the blonde nin gave him a threatening look and Tobi was effectively silenced.

Sakura swallowed the lump in her throat. Their eyes interlocked and his eyes darkened, as though he was recalling a particular memory. Sakura shivered; whether it was from the chill air or his gaze, she was unable to tell.

Fortunately, the rest were too preoccupied arguing to notice the exchange, and it wasn't long before Sakura noticed a figure that had stealthily arrived to stand beside her. Glancing at his boots, her eyes slowly trailed upward to notice the orange-haired man. His violet irises were focused on her, studying her intently despite the argument going on.

"She should fight all of us! Then we could see who fucking sucks and who doesn't!"

"Are you an idiot, yeah? Do you want her to die of chakra exhaustion? One opponent is enough-"

"She will fight Itachi," Pein stated calmly, as his eyes addressed the bickering group before him, and to Sakura's amazement, the bickering ceased almost instantly. "This is a good opportunity for her to know his fighting style, and vice versa, for Itachi as well. Anyway," he continued, giving her a smirk, "They are both nins from Konoha. It will be quite interesting to see their abilities against each other."

For a long moment, there was silence as they digested his words. Itachi was undoubtedly one of the strongest in Akatsuki, and although neither of the members admitted it, they knew it inherently.

"You are royally fucked," Hidan informed Sakura cheerily, humming a nondescript tune before grabbing his scythe and jumping up to the tree branch above.

Sakura sighed, readying her gloves as she noticed Itachi walking calmly to the middle of the clearing. Outwardly, she wore an air of nonchalance. Inside, she was a mess of nerves, jittery and nervous. She had almost opened her mouth to say no when Pein had suggested Itachi to fight her, but she managed to calm enough, biting her lip to keep herself from refusing.

She tightened her bun and stood up, stretching her body in her black ninja outfit – a black, form-fitting sleeveless top with a tight, black short-sleeved mesh shirt underneath, and a matching black skirt and shorts to match the top. She noticed in her peripheral vision that Deidara was looking rather worriedly at her.

Then Hidan spoke. "Going to run like the coward you are, bitch?" he sneered.

Sakura froze, and a look of pure, unadulterated anger flashed momentarily through her features. Whatever she had been worried about disappeared, leaving a burning anger in its wake. Her fists clenched and unclenched as she bowed her head slightly, and when she looked up, her expression changed to a rather steely look of resolved determination.

"I am not a coward." Her voice was soft, but clear and the rest of them heard it and Hidan fell oddly silent. She walked forward briskly to the Uchiha, who had already stood still, waiting for her.

She was a good four hundred feet from the rest and thirty from Itachi when she stopped walking.

A brief bout of wind blew over the clearing, letting loose strays of hair brush over her face as she regarded Itachi with a cool, calm expression. His tomoe spun lazily in his eyes as he waited for her to make the first move.

Then the fight began.

000000

Running towards him, Sakura made a set of handseals, making a bunshin and they both lunged for their opponent, throwing a set of punches and kicks as Itachi deftly kicked the bunshin into nothingness and met her hit for hit, his moves faster than hers at an alarming rate that she could barely keep up with her vision focused on his feet, wisely avoiding his Sharingan gaze.

Noticing she was going nowhere, she flipped backwards until she reached a far enough position.

"Quitting already, bitch?" She ignored the foul-mouthed shinobi from afar as she pressed her index and middle finger over her closed eyelids, activating her doujutsu. Her eyes opened to reveal a shocking glowing yellow, and it was lucky that she opened them soon; for Itachi was already in front of her, his hand coming to meet her face. She noticed a brief look of shock pass over his features and his widened eyes bore into her yellow ones as she took the opportunity to dodge and attempted a kick on his feet, crouching momentarily.

Itachi was Itachi, and he deftly avoided it, jumping up in the air as he made a set of handseals. Sakura was sure she could look into his eyes without much worry, seeing that the doujutsu accelerated her ability to sense genjutsu and dispel it. Also, his eyes were deteriorating and she suspected he would not use them unless necessary.

A fire blew out of his mouth and Sakura made an earth wall as a shield. She saw Itachi jump over the wall and prepared herself; however, another Itachi appeared to her left of her wall and to her right and all of them threw an astonishing number of shurikens.

"Fuuton: Fuusajin!" She swept her arm and a great gust of wind blew at her opponents and their instruments, flinging them back momentarily.

However, the clone closest to her exploded with a loud boom, causing thick, jagged shards of earth to impale onto her left arm and leg. Sakura cursed; it was his Shadow Clone Technique and she should have suspected it earlier. Her feet backpedaled to a safer distance from him quickly as she thought of her next move. However, the black-haired man appeared on her left side so quickly she could have sworn her neck almost snapped from turning so quickly to face him.

She parried with him in a dance, her left arm and leg hurting with every movement, the shards digging deeper into her thigh and arm as her wounds bled more. However, her doujutsu enabled that she kept up with him blow for blow, and her adrenaline pushed her.

She was not a coward. She would fight him with every bit of strength she possessed.

It was then that she decided to stop using her fists but her fingernails. She surprised him halfway through the hits with a quick change of her punches to swipes, her fingernails glowing an eerie blue with her chakra scalpels. Her chakra was going to be used up soon at this rate, but she didn't care. They engaged in an even deadlier dance this time, and Itachi seemed to be warier of her hands.

Then he seemed to disappear, and the surroundings grew eerily quiet.

For a moment, Sakura stopped her movements, feeling slightly disoriented. The sky began to darken, and a cold gust of wind blew in the air. She turned and noticed the members watching from afar had disappeared.

Then her senses picked up on an odd chakra buzz, tingling through the air. Her yellow eyes flashed and she knew; it was a genjutsu.

"Kai!" she said, her yellow eyes glimmering as the world fell back to normal. Her eyes widened as she suddenly felt a cold breath blowing at her ear. He was behind her. He grabbed her hands tightly placing them behind her back, and she felt a rush of warmth from his torso as he prepared himself for his next move.

Before he could do anything else –and she dared not think what he was about to do then-, she activated her chakra scalpels and he released her.

Jumping back, Sakura turned to look at him. His eyes were narrowed, his palms dripping with thick, red blood dripping in rivulets as he regarded her with darkened eyes.

"Not bad," he said evenly, and that was all Sakura heard before his bunshin tackled her from behind, catching her in a stranglehold. Choking, the pink-haired nin did what she knew best.

She tapped the ground with her foot, and chaos ensued as the earth and sand shifted, causing a huge crater to form in the clearing, the ground vibrating with extreme intensity. The bunshin lost his balance and resolved his hold on her and she jumped free, looking for Itachi's chakra with her doujutsu through the dissolving cloud of dust. She had to act fast. She had little chakra left.

There! She found him. Sakura pulled out her trump card, hoping he would not catch on to her idea. Her hands made a final set of handseals she knew would officially drain her chakra and make this her last move.

"Fuuton: Fuujin!" Her mouth opened and her palms came together at her mouth as a cloud of dust exited at an alarmingly fast rate. He flipped backwards diagonally to the side, managing to avoid most of the dust. Briefly, he wondered whether she knew the Sharingan had the ability to see chakra even in spite of the dust. Maybe she didn't, and Itachi gave an amused smirk as he watched the girl still blowing dust from her mouth.

Then he realized. The dust was a special kind; it could catch fire.

He saw Sakura click her teeth, and it was already too late. It was such a small click; yet, the spark was enough. The dust cloud exploded in a magnificent explosion of fire, incinerating everything in its way and sending shards of earth into his body that was now flying back.

His back hit the tree, and he was unconscious within a few seconds on impact.

A few seconds later, the pink-haired girl's knees buckled as she dropped unceremoniously onto the ground in the middle of the crater, unconscious and severely drained of chakra.

Not too far from the clearing, lay three open-mouthed Akatsuki members, one grinning blue man and a very amused, triumphant Leader.

**00000**

**Yes, he was half-blind and underestimated her intelligence. So Sakura won. But it's still a win nonetheless, no? **

**You know you want to review. Come on, don't you just love the fact that she actually kicked his ass?**

**I know I did. Hehe.**

**Anyway,**

**New poll: Which pairing has produced the sweetest story ever?**

**Review and I'll give you more fluff. (Dangles fluff bait in front of computer screen suggestively) XD**


	9. Itachi

**A WHOPPING 12 REVIEWS THIS TIME! I'm so grateful, especially to the Awesomes who constantly review. You know who you are! :D Either way, thank you thank you thank you :DDDDD 65 reviews, an average of 8 per chapter. THANK YOU THANK YOU.**

**Without further ado, chapter 9 everybody!**

**Props to anyone who notices the classic Pocahontas scene in the flashback below!**

**00000**

**3 years ago, when everything changed.**

The field was eerily still and quiet, except for the occasional gust of wind that caused the lallang in the field to sway along in a slow, silent dance. A body lay in the field, unmoving. Strands of pink hair swayed gently in the wind, and eventually, the body seemed to take a long breath.

The girl's eyes flew open, revealing jade-coloured eyes. She clutched at her throbbing head with her right hand, moaning softly. Slowly, she propped herself up from the ground with her elbows and noticed her clothes in an irreparable, tattered condition. Her memory slowly returned, and with an increasingly dizzying rush of panic, she staggered up, her eyes already blurring with flowing tears. Her breath came out in panicked puffs, her eyes scanning the surroundings haphazardly as her mind started to whirl.

Recognising the place, she ran in a familiar direction, her small feet noticeably bare and white, a stark contrast against the rough, chocolate ground. The soles of her feet started to sting with the accumulating scrapes and cuts against jagged rocks on the ground, but she channelled even more energy to her feet, as though her life depended on it.

She came to a halt when she reached a cliff, her clothes shifting in the wind and her hair whirling about her face as frightened eyes surveyed the area below.

What she saw confirmed her worst fears, and for the longest time, she buckled on the floor… and promptly cried.

**Present time, 11:38 a.m.**

Sakura woke up with a start, her eyes flying open. Moaning slightly, she looked around and noticed her lying on a familiar bed.

She was in her room. In Akatsuki's headquarters, in Amegakure.

Memory came back to her in a dizzying flash and despite her tired, sore limbs aching from the all-out spar, she sat up grinning gleefully, mentally congratulating herself on her win. She was, thankfully, still in her outfit – she still hadn't figured out who had changed her clothes the last time, and she did not want another occurrence. Stretching her limbs and swinging her legs slowly over the edge of the bed, she flexed her toes experimentally and placed her feet fully on the floor and proceeded to stand up.

And promptly fell down, down to the cold hard floor with a squeak, her head almost crashing against the concrete, her long, flowing hair blocking her vision. At the same time, her room door creaked open to reveal a pair of toned feet.

"Sakura!" An alarmed male, baritone voice called out as the figure rushed over to help her up. Sakura felt miffed and betrayed by her body, which threatened to buckle in the man's arms.

"I can help myself, Deidara," she muttered, but saw a few bandages on her body which she had not noticed before, covering her left arm and leg where the shards used to be. She looked up at Deidara and saw his concerned, cerulean eyes at her appearance. He frowned at her, giving her a mock-glare.

"You're supposed to be in bed, yeah. I did not bandage those wounds only for them to reopen again. You need rest." At that, he sat her up at the edge of the bed as he knelt before her, opting to check her bandaged wounds.

Sakura reached for his hand, stopping him as their gazes interlocked. "I can do it," she reassured him, and under his scrutinizing, intense gaze, she unwrapped the bandage on her thigh. The wounds were coated with dried blood, and the shards removed, which she was thankful for, reducing the chances of getting infected. Placing a hand over her wounds, she channelled her green healing chakra to spread all the way to her fingertips. Satisfied at the amount of chakra regained, she began to heal.

The soothing hum of her chakra started, and Deidara watched it with a slight tinge of awe written all over his face. Sakura stared mutely at her wounds, pointedly avoiding Deidara who was leaning forward on his knees as he watched her.

Then he spoke, breaking the silence. "Ne, Sakura… Remember the time we almost got mauled by tigers on our mission?"

Sakura let out a genuine peal of laughter, smiling fondly at the memory he brought up. "Yeah, I do. That was one weird mission, retrieving that businessman's tiger-pet. Thank Kami he paid us enough for all the crap we had to go through!"

"Sakura, they practically unleashed a whole freaking zoo after us, yeah. No amount of money could pay up for the terror they caused us."

"And I still can't believe he has a tiger as a pet. Seriously, who has a _tiger_ as a pet?" Sakura scoffed.

"Well, obviously he does, yeah. But I remember one thing I wasn't able to forget," he said, his blue eyes twinkling merrily as he visibly fought to hide his amusement. "I remember me blowing up, and you were such a softie-"

Sakura's face flushed a deep red. "Now wait, I-"

"And when I woke up, you were sniffling like the world ended and were near hysterical-"

"Oh, come on-"

"-And you were healing me, yeah," he continued, his gaze trained on hers as he got up slowly from his kneeling position and crept closer to her, grinning mischievously. "And then, you said…" His hands came to rest on the bed, on both sides of her, as he leaned closer to her face. "You said…" His voice had become a bare whisper, his breath brushing gently against her face like a soft, soothing wind.

Her mouth opened, and the words came out on its own accord, in a soft whisper.

"Don't leave me alone, you idiot."

At that moment, the door opened with a loud bang. Deidara jumped back, as though burned, and the two of them stared at the visitor, who looked calm and collected as always, despite the scene he had definitely noticed earlier.

"Sakura-san. I need to speak with you. Privately," he said evenly, watching her impassively as he waited for her answer. Deidara made a small "hm" before shooting Itachi a glare. He stalked towards the door, intent on exiting the room, but not before interlocking gazes with Sakura with dark, cerulean eyes.

When he disappeared and the door closed with a soft click, Sakura seemed to snap out of the daze she was in with a weary sigh. "What can I help you with, Itachi-san?"

The man in question raked in her tired, ragged form and paused before proceeding to take a seat in a chair at the study table near the bed. "I wanted to ask how you managed to have a doujutsu."

How very straightforward of him to ask, Sakura mused. Slowly, she stood up, her energy returning to her legs and arms after healing, and proceeded to walk to him as she reached for her pack on the table. Rifling through her belongings, she eventually found what she was looking for and took it out. Itachi regarded her with his intense, hooded gaze as she bounced the object up and down in her right hand.

It was a transparent packet that held a bottle with a thick, white substance inside.

She tossed it to him and he caught it with one hand reflexively, turning it over and observing it. After a while, he spoke.

"It looks like a substance that numbs the nerves. However, my eyes detect a hint of chakra in them," he said, pausing in his observations to study her.

Sakura nodded, unperturbed by his gaze. "It's a substance I injected myself with. The chakra is mine, as you have noticed, but it's white in colour. This chakra is meant to alter, and in this case, alter the structure of the eye and strands of DNA," she explained. "But, to complete the process of creating a doujutsu for a person without kekkei genkai, the person has to keep injecting white chakra continuously for quite a while and monitor it. If the chakra exceeds a certain level, the unique kekkei genkai forming may result in blindness, and if it is too low… well, it triggers a defence mechanism in the brain in response to the DNA-altering chakra and I suspect it may cause death. "

He raised an eyebrow at her. Sakura took it as a sign that he was impressed, but she chose not to dwell on it. He was a mass murderer; his thoughts did not matter.

He was the man who destroyed Sasuke inside out.

He watched her curiously, making her feel like fidgeting. "You can change anyone's eyes?" he asked.

Sakura pondered on it for a moment, wondering if she should lie and say no in case he wanted her to do it on the Akatsuki. But it was Itachi; nothing escaped him. So she responded with half truths, which was much safer than telling a lie altogether.

"Yes and no. I can do it, but it depends on the person's sensitivity to my white chakra. It's a complex ritual and is extremely risky. Assume a person reacts negatively to my chakra," Sakura gestured to her eyes at this point, "I will not be able to stop injecting my chakra, in case he goes blind or develop a defence mechanism that can cause death. He will be forced to wait for the process to end… and basically, it's likely to be messy. He will have major complications and his brain may be affected as a result, causing mental defects in thinking. Then again, that's just my theory."

"Hn," he said, glancing idly at her belongings. Sakura raked her hand through her hair which she was sure was messy. She was beginning to get tire of his presence. She felt like crap and smelt like crap, and she desperately wished and needed a shower very soon.

"What do you want, Itachi?" she snapped, her arms folded in front of her. "Why did you really come here?"

His red eyes bore into her, and he leaned back against the chair, folding his arms. "I wanted you to start healing my eyes, seeing that a day has passed since the spar and I have recovered. However…" his voice trailed off as the edge of his mouth came up in a smirk. "You are obviously still suffering from exhaustion. This is despite the fact that you won and I lost," he said smoothly in his baritone voice.

If Sakura had scrutinized his gaze, she would have noticed a slightly intrigued look on his face as he watched her.

Jade eyes widened at his statement. It had been a day since the spar? She should have learned this from the state of her wounds, but she must have been too tired to notice anything.

She almost jumped when he gracefully stood up from the chair in an attempt to leave.

"I'll leave to your rest, then, Sakura-san," he said, bowing his head politely as he made for the door.

"W-wait!" Sakura called out before she could tamp down her mouth. The black-haired nin stopped walking and turned his head, his gaze focused on her.

The roseate-haired girl shifted her feet uneasily, as though a question was burning her inside.

Therefore, he wasn't surprised when she opened her mouth to ask the same burning question he suspected she'd ask.

"Why did you do it?" She whispered, and his entire body stiffened imperceptibly. He levelled her angry, affronted gaze coolly, and watched as she continued.

"Why are you doing this to Sasuke? Does it make you happy, to know you made a monster out of him?"

There was a long, tense moment where the two stared at each other, not backing down from the intense looks of the other.

Then the Uchiha spoke, his words mysterious, like a conundrum she was itching to solve.

"He needed it." And he left, leaving the kunoichi alone to tend to her confused, swirling thoughts.

00000

**I know, bout time she confronted him. I mean, it's Sasuke's bro she finally gets to talk to. You gotta ask him why he KO-ed the clan sometime.**

**Anyway, the poll results for the previous one are a mixture of ideas, so I can't summarise them. And did you spot the Pocahontas scene in the flashback? Ehehe. XD**

**My personal pairing (sweetest one) is a NaruSaku story by luvtoshi, Let's Get Married. I was reading it yesterday night and got so mad that I had a lack of a love life. LOLOL. Naruto is soooooooooo sweeeeeeeet.**

**My shoulder is hurting like a boss again. Argh. It'll REALLY cheer me up if you leave a review! : )**


	10. Antidote

**You guys are going to be so happy pappy. This chapter is loooong. I gotta warn you, I'm not sure of my typing skills here… if I type too much, I tend to get braindead. I'll edit it later if you notice something amiss.**

**00000**

**One year ago.**

A girl sat atop a tree, humming softly as she sharpened her kunai with a block of whetstone. Her feet occasionally tapped against each other in a swinging movement, seeming to create a steady beat. Her black cloak ruffled in a slight breeze along with her brown hair tied up in a ponytail, and she closed her eyes momentarily, revelling in the calm atmosphere.

For a long moment, she sat still, her eyelids snapped shut, basking in the peaceful silence.

It was promptly broken when she heard faint chimes in the faraway distance. Snapping her eyes open to reveal a set of chocolate irises, she scanned the clearing, waiting for the visitors she knew would be arriving soon.

The sound of tinkling bells grew increasingly louder as two cloaked figures appeared from the trees, coming closer. Strapping her kunai to the holster on her thigh, she then proceeded to insert her whetstone into her pack.

Then she waited for them to arrive.

The two figures advanced towards her until they walked up the tree opposite her, settling on the huge branch closest to her.

"Morning, Saya-chan!" "Morning, yeah." A very disgruntled, exhausted looking Deidara gave a brief nod. Beside him was the always chirpy Tobi, bouncing excitedly on the branch and making it shake violently.

"Stop moving, Tobi. You're going to break the damn branch, yeah," the blonde nin grumbled, running a hand through his hair. He had yet to tie it. It was tousled slightly from the wind and gave him a slight sexy bedhead look, and he caught Sakura staring at him.

She looked away as if nothing happened.

"Morning, Deidara… Tobi," she responded pleasantly. "You're late."

The two male figures opposite her seemed to freeze in their tracks as they walked down the tree.

"Tobi is sorry! But Deidara-sempai decided to wash his hair!" the masked man pointed at said man, an obvious blaming game in procession.

Deidara scowled. "We had a long scouting mission, yeah. I had to wash my hair after all the shit we went through yesterday!"

It was then that Sakura noticed he had dark eyebags. His face was unusually pale and he kept yawning, as if he lacked sleep. He did not look good at all. She flashed him a concerned look as she jumped down onto the ground from the tree.

"What did you do yesterday?" She asked with a contemplative look on her face.

Deidara gave her a weak lopsided grin as she walked towards him. "It's top secret, yeah. I can't tell you unless you end up being an Akatsuki."

Oh. "So it was another of those crazy Akatsuki missions," she said flatly, not bothering to hide her distaste. She had grown close enough with Deidara and Tobi to make those passing remarks, so it didn't surprise her when all they did was to give a nod from Deidara and an assertion from Tobi.

"Tobi is a good boy! Akatsuki is also good, Saya-chan! We just want world peace!"

_Peace my ass_, Sakura thought sourly, but made no move to counter his statement. Instead, she brought up a different topic. "Why in the world are you bringing _bells _along with you? This is supposed to be an easy stealth mission, not the attract-the-whole-population kind," she glowered, folding her arms.

"Right after you left, yeah, the guy gave us some bells. He said it'll call his pet tiger to us, so it's easier to locate him in the place."

"Tobi thinks the place is like a zoo! Ne, Saya-chan?"

"It's not a zoo, Tobi. It's an illegal animal storage warehouse that keeps rare animals to be sold illegally to others for a large fee," Sakura explained wearily. "That said, this mission is retarded. At least it's a good pay for us to go through this crap."

"I hope so, yeah," Deidara sighed, raking his fingernails through his hair and proceeded to tie it up. Inwardly, Sakura mourned at the loss of seeing his hair flow freely.

Outwardly, she was a calm, authority figure as she began talking. "We need to muffle the bell noises when we reach," she suggested.

Deidara nodded. "Already figured it out. We'll use our cloaks," he said solemnly, and he and Tobi began to shrug off their cloaks and Sakura offered hers as he wrapped the bells in their packs with them. Placing the cloaks in his pack, he nodded and they set off.

00000

Sakura hissed through gritted teeth, furious. From her vantage point, she watched as Deidara was approached by two girls, who, judging by their clothing, looked like hookers. He had made his move to sneak in while Tobi entered from the warehouse from the opposite direction, and Sakura was supposed to be back-up in case anything went amiss.

However, the two girls had spotted him near the warehouse entrance and he had struck up a casual conversation, as if nothing happened. In her opinion, they stood _way_ too close to him. One of them was even stroking his arm up and down with an all-too-flirtatious giggle.

She'd thought he'd knock them out, but _noo, _he had welcomed them with an equally flirtatious, handsome, lopsided grin and a smooth "hey". He had even ogled at them.

Tch. Men. The brunette slapped a hand to her forehead, exasperated. Shouldn't he have suspected that they probably _worked _at the warehouse as well if they were in this area? There was no sign of civilisation for miles except for this… place. This mission proved to be even more annoying than she thought.

She was a millisecond away from blowing her cover and shooting her senbon into the two girls' necks when they walked off, looking rather upset and disappointed. Obviously, he had turned them down for…whatever they were offering. He shot a look in her direction, shooting her a wink as he delved into the darkness of the warehouse. She scowled reflexively.

Finally he was in. She slumped in the bushes, fighting the urge to yawn as she waited patiently for the signal. Idly, she wondered why the warehouse was so quiet when it held many animals. Shouldn't it be noisy? Granted, it was nighttime now, but some animals had to be nocturnal.

The reason came to her like a slap to the face and she bolted upright.

The animals were sedated. It made sense for them to be sedated; if they were noisy, they'd attract any passing traveller. And if they were sedated, it meant… oh _hell _no.

Her face paled as she continued her line of thought. The bells won't work. They'd have to find their animal manually. And if the bells don't work, it meant that they can't make a quick escape from the civilian people on patrol after they hear the tinkling of bells.

Scanning the area around her and ascertaining the coast to be clear, she stood up and ran to the side door of the warehouse Deidara had used to sneak in. With a quiet click, the door opened and she snuck in, stealthily jumping behind a smelly pile of boxes. She sniffed and caught the scent of grass, and knew it to be animal food. Wrinkling her nose in distaste, she peeked hesitantly over a particular box, trying to find Deidara under the dim lighting. She noted two men walking freely in the vicinity, patrolling what seemed to be hundreds of poor, malnourished caged animals. They were a myriad, ranging from tigers to elephants, and some she'd never seen before. A wave of pity washed over her as she looked at their motionless bodies, and anger lanced through her like a hot knife.

And they all slept as though they were on their deathbed. Thinking back, Sakura recalled the businessman describing his pet to be a baby white tiger, and she fought back a sigh, knowing how difficult the mission would be in finding the tiger. Her eyes scanned the room as she thought of the next best plan.

Their best bet would be to neutralize the two men on patrol so they could walk around freely, find the tiger quick and escape in a jiffy. After all, Sakura noticed no chakra on them, making them civilian men. Sakura crouched, watching the two men turn away from her direction, and promptly launched into a quick run up the extremely tall wall of the building and proceeded to walk upside down on the ceiling that stood about a hundred meters from the ground. She stopped directly above the spot of one of them, her brown locks upside down and her sleeveless top threatening to fall above her chest area. Thankfully, she wore her black shorts so neither Tobi nor Deidara would be getting flashed anytime soon.

With a focused, calculative look in her chocolate eyes, she released her chakra from her feet as she fell gracefully, landing on her feet behind one of the men as quietly as a pin dropping. She pressed a fingertip to the man's temple, and he could barely give a gasp of surprise before dropping onto the ground in a dead faint.

Once her work was done, she ran forward, tackling the other man who had just turned in her direction. He gave a short gasp but was promptly knocked out as well.

"Well, that was a waste of time, yeah." Behind a pile of empty cages, Deidara emerged, a scowl on his pale face.

"What is?" Sakura asked, simultaneously walking around the rows of cages in a carefully planned manner as she started to scan each cage for the tiger.

"The bells." With a weary sigh, he wandered off as well, catching on to Sakura's new rough plan as he looked around. Tobi appeared soon after, and after Sakura barked her instructions for him to look starting with the middle row, he bounded off eagerly.

It was about two minutes later when Sakura found a baby white tiger, nestled in soiled grass in a poor, dilapidated cage. Giving a sharp whistle, her two partners came not long after.

"Did you find any other white tiger?" she asked, glancing at the both of them. Tobi shook his head.

"Nope, yeah," Deidara answered, an unhealthy amount of sweat beading his brow. Sakura frowned, wondering why he looked especially unwell today, but chose to ask later. Channelling blue chakra into her fingertips, she made a swipe at the lock of the cage and it was effectively severed in two.

"Wait," her blonde partner held her wrist before she could reach out for the baby tiger and she gave him a questioning look. "We can't just carry him, he'll get too cold." His eyes softened as he looked at the animal sleeping in the cage.

It was then that they heard a loud rumble of laughter from outside. Sakura's eyes widened as she noted shinobi chakra, originating from at least seven people, walking very close to them, toward the warehouse.

Shit. So there were shinobi in this line of work after all.

"We have to go," Sakura said urgently as she caught Deidara's gesture to mask their own chakras. She did it quickly along with Tobi and Deidara himself and was just about to make a grab for the tiger when she heard the familiar –loud- tinkling of bells.

Oh _shit. _Sakura paused in her movements with eyes widened as she looked at the source. Beside her was a sheepish Tobi, who had –with all good intentions- made a grab for the cloaks in Deidara's pack, the bells rolling and clattering on the floor.

"Tobi is sorry! Tobi thought tiger is cold-"

"Dammit, Tobi!" Deidara hissed through gritted teeth just as a man outside spoke loudly. "What's that noise?"

Muttering a string of curses, the furious blonde grabbed the tiger and quickly placed him in Tobi's hands. "Go! We'll handle it!" he hissed, and without pause, a very apologetic-looking Tobi ran off by the back door with a snoozing cat in his arms.

It was then that the large front door opened sideways. A warm hand gripped hers as he pulled the two of them aside behind a pile of boxes, crouching low as they squeezed in the very small space they had.

She knew that when shinobi were around, it was futile to outrun, and they had better chances of not being followed if they _made sure _they could _never _be followed. Hence, it meant an inevitable fight.

Sakura didn't like killing, but when she looked at the poor animals, she felt an indescribable wrath raging within her, calling for justice to those responsible.

She waited with Deidara for the inevitable clash behind the boxes, having sealed their chakra once they heard the noises outside. However, something else happened.

The two of them tensed when they heard a loud smack, followed by what sounded like an animal's whimper. "This bitch here was such a hassle to steal. I thought I'd give it some form of punishment for scratching my cheek here. Eh, princess? Treated like such a queen in that damn zoo, that when I came, it put up quite a fight against me." A much louder smack followed.

Another whimper again, and it sounded like a dog this time.

What a cruel, sadistic _son of a bitch_!

Sakura felt her anger rolling off her in waves and she opened her mouth to stop them, mission be damned- only to find Deidara clamping his hand over her mouth.

"Mmf!" she retaliated, her eyes furious as she struggled to pry his hands off. Her legs moved and in the next instant, he had locked her legs with his, preventing her from running off.

"Stop… struggling!" Deidara hissed in her ear as he continued his hold on her. "Don't make this difficult! We can still escape, they haven't sensed us, yeah!"

However, it fell on deaf ears as Sakura heard the continuous beating… and the men's disgusting laughter that followed.

The two continued their violent tussle, her hands and legs fighting his strong grip, until they came to a point where she lay below him and he was forced to straddle her, his hand still retaining a firm grip on her mouth and his legs interlocked with hers.

For a moment, Sakura was wary of their position and closeness, his breath blowing on her face. Her eyes widened when she suddenly _felt _the mouth on his hand move for a second. Their gazes interlocked, and she involuntarily shivered, noticing how his eyes had darkened to a stormy blue just a few inches away from her chocolate ones, as if he knew what she was thinking.

For a moment, she felt like forgetting everything else … forgetting who she was, and what she was fighting for. It was a selfish, selfish thought, but she had it all the same.

Then one of the men spoke.

"Eh, what's this? Guys, one animal is missing! There's a bell over here!"

And the two nins –one angry, one resigned- broke contact from each other as if they were on fire, and jumped out in full view.

"What the-" one of the men started.

"Split up, yeah. We can't fight here with animals around!" She gave an acquiescing nod, and he seemed satisfied. With a loud crack, his clay bird materialised and he jumped onto it as it flew out of the warehouse. Four shinobi ran out, intent on pursuing him.

The brown-haired female growled as she noted the three shinobi staying behind to handle her, each of them giving her a sneer.

Obviously they underestimated their opponent.

"SHANNARO!"

She launched into a high-speed run, pumping chakra into her feet, her anger fuelling her as she body slammed into the closest nin, who was taken unawares and unconscious on impact. Slinging the body over her shoulder, she continued running out of the warehouse, ignoring the men's curses behind as they immediately started a jutsu. Once she was far enough, she flung the unconscious man high in the sky, letting him land precariously on the ground with a loud thud that followed with a few cracking bones, and he was dead on impact.

It was then that she turned to face the two remaining nins and almost balked at the sight.

In front of the two smug-looking nins were hundreds of different animals, ranging from lions and tigers to a myriad of birds, to goats and cows. Sakura noticed a few adorable kittens, licking themselves.

If it wasn't a serious moment, she would've bowled over laughing. Maybe she would... someday, when these animals were freed.

"Neat jutsu, huh? Our master made it himself and taught it to us. They listen to everything we say," one of them boasted, giving her a sneer. To Sakura's horror, it seemed as though they had used those animals for slave purposes to do their bidding.

Oh, she was very, very angry. And what was the idiot thinking, telling her about his jutsu? The other nin didn't seem particularly pissed either. In fact, he shot her an arrogant look.

In that moment, Sakura knew they were probably chuunin-level shinobi. Pathetic bastards.

She quickly racked her brain for ideas and within seconds, she had formulated a rough plan of action, and was fairly certain it would work.

Cold brown eyes scanned them with a calculating look. Then she sneered, a look that overpowered their own. "Come at me, you assholes, and get what you deserve."

One of them curled his lip, and gave the order. "Attack her!"

The whole group of animals charged forward, suddenly adopting menacing looks.

Sakura quickly adopted a fighting stance, waiting for them to get close enough.

It was simple, really. She'd figured that if she got to the men first and eliminated them, the jutsu they did would stop as well and if there was a contract, it would be broken. She highly doubted there was a contract though, judging by the men's abusive tendencies towards these animals.

Her fingers quickly touched her eyes and they glimmered with a shocking, shimmery yellow, and it was just in time, for the animals had already charged towards her. For a brief moment, she wondered if Deidara was going through the same thing.

Making a set of handseals, she made two clones of herself that charged at the enemy for distraction purposes, while she simultaneously drifted below the earth, aiming for a spot behind the area where the two chakra signatures stood still.

Rising above the earth with a gentle swish behind them, she caught the two men unaware and grabbed their two heads and smashed them together, knocking them unconscious. With a rough twist of their necks, the men collapsed, dead. The animals soon faded from existence, but not before giving her their final –and what looked like- almost grateful looks.

When she was done, her breath was coming out in calmer, less angry puffs. She coolly walked from the area, intent on finding her partner.

Until she heard it and felt it.

A massive explosion rocked the earth beneath her, and huge plumes of smoke started rising in the distance. Sakura's eyes widened in panic. It was a trademark move of Deidara's and before she realised it, her feet were moving on its own accord, running in the explosion's direction.

It was a minute until she finally reached the clearing that was still smoking, and her panic was running in full steam. "Deidara!" she called out, noticing charred bodies, bits and pieces scattered across the clearing. A chill ran up her spine when she saw charred animal bodies as well.

Then her eyes landed on him.

_Oh shit. Oh no, no, no-_

He was bleeding profusely from his chest area and there was a massive hole in his chest. His clothes were badly burnt and he looked up in the sky, his blue eyes unseeing. For a moment she lost the ability to think, and she could only stare at him, because he looked so lifeless… so unlike the man she knew him to be. Her senses seemed to disappear, and she could hear nothing, feel nothing, see nothing… and she remembered a certain, extremely agonizing memory that involved another teammate with the same hair colour as his….

Then a voice within her spoke.

_Do not be so dramatic, Sakura. The Akatsuki nin is still alive. I can sense his life force. If you want to save the bastard, do it now._

"Kurama," she whispered, her eyes wide. Then she took another look at the seemingly dead man. His chest seemed to rise ever so slowly...

He wasn't dead. Not yet.

She found herself running to him before she was aware of her movements, her hands already flashing a steady green as she pressed her hands to his chest. Her heart thudded painfully and her mind whirled with medical facts as she struggled to save her friend.

Her _friend._ Sakura suddenly knew, that they weren't mere co-workers anymore; they were friends, and of the oddest kind. She vaguely noticed her vision blurring and her tears dripping like raindrops onto his chest. "Please please please," she whispered, repeating it like a mantra to reassure herself that everything was fine.

Her body shook with sobs, but she kept her hands firmly on his chest, her chakra deteriorating rapidly as it struggled to bring him back. He was still bleeding, fresh blood leaving his wound rapidly.

She was going to lose him.

_Please, please, let him be okay, please…_

"Don't leave me here, you idiot!" She screamed at the top of her lungs, uncaring of whoever heard them. Her eyes glistened with fresh tears, and they made a steady thudding sound as they dripped against his chest.

Then he coughed, his mouth coming up with blood. Relief coursed through Sakura like a tidal wave. However, much to her disdain, she found herself still crying uncontrollably and unable to stop.

A sooty hand reached out to her face, wiping her tears away gently, and her blurry vision focused on his hand and travelled downwards to his face.

Eyes that seemed to twinkle with amusement gazed back at her, and he managed to muster a half-grin. "Did you just order me not to leave you, yeah?"

A shaky laugh escaped her in between sobs, her tears finally starting to recede a little. "Did you have to blow yourself up, you asshole?" She tried to growl, but failed miserably. Instead, she sounded like a whining kid.

"They were jounin-level shinobi, yeah. It was difficult. Anyway, it was a bang, and I bet it was such an artistic display that it blew you away," his pallor was slowly coming back to normal as he smirked, his face turning a healthy colour.

Sakura scoffed at his statement, then realised what he had said. His opponents were jounin-level? "But the ones I got were chuunin idiots!" Her eyes flashed an angry brown as she realised what the shinobi had done. Clearly, they had deemed her harmless, the gender-biased bastards.

Deidara gave a weak laugh and coughed, receiving an angry glare from Sakura who told him to stay still. "I'm sorry… I had to kill those animal summons, yeah. I was feeling really, really exhausted and it was a tough battle with those four. They had birds that attacked me when I was up in the air-"

"You did what was necessary," she said simply, cutting him short. Granted, she wasn't happy with the outcome, but he had a valid point in doing so.

Sakura bit her lip, thinking it was rather odd of him to apologise. Wasn't he an Akatsuki member? They had killed many men without a fleeting thought, and here he was, having a guilty conscience about killing animals.

It didn't add up, and Sakura mentally filed away the information for later. Maybe she really didn't know Deidara after all.

"By the way, Deidara…" she continued, her voice trailing off as if she was uncertain of what to say.

"Hm?"

"You were poisoned," she informed him. In the midst of healing, her chakra had encountered a foreign substance, and she opted to take it out after she mended his internal organs that had ruptured badly during the explosion. The blonde man who had been listening grew increasingly pale as she continued to speak. "You had no idea, did you? Whatever you did on the mission yesterday ended up in you getting poisoned, and whoever who did it meant to kill you very slowly, so you won't even realise it until it makes you paralysed."

Silence reigned on them, and for a few minutes, his eyes focused on his surroundings, as though absorbing the information.

She decided to push her luck in finding out more information. "Who did this to you?" Azure eyes locked on brown and she noticed a stormy expression on his features, as though he was inwardly debating on whether or not to tell. For a moment, Sakura thought she'd got to him.

Then, as though a shutter was closed on his open features, his eyes turned distant as they focused on her with an obviously forced grin.

"I can't tell you, Saya. It's top secret, remember? Akatsuki business, yeah." Propping himself up on his elbows, he ignored Sakura's nagging as he sat up. He proceeded to stagger in an upright position, his face turning from cheerful to grim when he turned away from her.

Then when he turned towards her, his forced grin was back, and for some reason, Sakura's heart dropped.

He was reminding her of their differences. He was an Akatsuki, a terrorist, and she was just a missing nin who didn't share the same ideals as him.

A chill crept up her spine as she realised she had actually _healed _him, an Akatsuki member. If she had left him to die, the world would have one less terrorist, one less person to bring horror and pain. And yet, she had done the exact opposite, because she felt he was a friend.

But was he?

Her mind ablaze with conflicting thoughts, she hastily reached through her pack at her shoulder, finding a familiar bottle and tossed it to him. He caught it with one hand, raising his eyebrow.

"An antidote I made, to cure most poisons. One swallow every six hours and you'll be fine," she said it all in one breath, her guilt coursing through her with every word as she avoided his gaze.

She couldn't believe it. She had just given an enemy nin an antidote for his poison.

"I-I have to go," she choked out, before she could break down. "You can call Tobi to help you move, right?" Without waiting for an answer, she took off and ran away from the object of her troubles, a fresh flow of tears clouding her vision.

"W-wait! Saya!" Deidara called out after her… but she was long gone.

…_I'm so sorry, Naruto._

00000

**3 years ago, a similar encounter. **

"N-naruto," she whispered, stroking his soft, blonde hair feverishly. The boy coughed, a steady stream of blood escaping him as he watched her with unsteady eyes.

"S-sakura-chan… It's okay, I will be okay. Please… I unsealed Kurama, you have to keep him before he leaves me…" Giving her a weak smile, his hand went up and caught hers, clasping it shakily as he struggled to look at her.

He was going to die.

"No, Naruto. You will not leave me," she whispered, her voice wavering as her other hand scanned his injuries. He was poisoned to the extent where not even the demon's chakra could not extinguish it enough. His body was already burning, and his eyes were unfocused. Sakura noted dimly that she was crying, and he had cupped her cheek in response, wiping away the tears.

"K-kurama, don't come out. You promised," he mumbled as his breaths grew shallower by the second.

"Shh… You'll be fine." She didn't know if she was reassuring him or her own self. She refused to think otherwise –no, she will _not_ believe otherwise.

Sakura heard footsteps behind her.

"Sakura, move, or I will haul your ass myself," her mentor's voice rang through the clearing, and although it was authoritative, it sounded shaky, as though she'd been crying.

"No, Naruto, please, please-" _Please, please, please don't leave me alone._

A pair of firm hands settled under her arms, intent on carrying her away.

"It's time, Naruto, Sakura." The solemn, sad voice belonged to Naruto's sensei. Screaming hysterically, Sakura kicked and fought his grip. She stared, wide-eyed as she noticed her teammate, her _best friend, _take one long, last shuddering breath.

"NARUTO!"

Her scream echoed through the clearing, a chilling sound in the night.

00000

**Present time.**

Sakura exited the shower, feeling more like herself by the second. She sighed happily, towelling her hair and then proceeding to brush it. She hummed a familiar tune, recalling her recent conversation with Itachi.

It was obvious he knew she didn't reveal everything, and of course, two can play the same game. Sakura wondered why in the world he thought Sasuke needed to become a monster. He was either batshit crazy with a dual personality or he had valid reasons in saying so.

She couldn't decide which category he belonged to.

Her stomach rumbled suddenly, breaking her from her thoughts. She exited her room with a weary sigh, intent on finding food. Her walk to the kitchen was an eerily quiet one, and she wondered where the other members were. Flinging open the kitchen doors, she found an equally empty kitchen and proceeded to make herself a meal.

It was about half an hour later when the other members started trickling in, their loud chattering breaking the silence.

"Well, if it isn't the bitch who made me lose all my money," Hidan said, his mouth turning up in a pout upon noticing her. He glared at her, but not before shooting her an impressed look.

Sakura only gave an acknowledging grin, getting accustomed to his word choice. Kisame came in soon after with Tobi and Itachi, demanding some food. Grumbling slightly about opportunistic maniacs, she scooped her soup into 5 different bowls before proceeding to set them on the table where the men sat. They dug in greedily. Well, it was actually Hidan and Kisame who did it.

"Mm-Pinky, you are awesome," the Mist nin said in between swallows of his soup, shooting her a grin, and Sakura couldn't help but beam.

Itachi, on the other hand, chose to retain his manners while eating, not even speaking once. Tobi had once again run off with his soup and rice bowl.

It was then that they heard someone humming a tune and Deidara waltzed in, his hands in his pockets as he casually surveyed the scene before him. Then he grinned.

"Man, this is like old times when Konan was around, yeah," he said, giving her one of his toothy grins as he walked over to her. Sakura tried to ignore her heart thudding contentedly in her chest.

"By the way, what _did_ you cook, hm?" He asked, standing beside her as he peered at the stove. The other members eavesdropped shamelessly.

"Seabass soup," she responded evenly, stirring the soup with a ladle.

Kisame proceeded to choke on his soup, coughing violently, as Hidan got into a roaring fit of laughter.

Sakura simply smiled.

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**Somewhere in Tetsu No Kuni, Land of Iron. **

A man sat alone, cross-legged on a large rock, seemingly meditating. A cool breeze made his black hair shift slightly, and he opened his eyelids to reveal a pair of mismatched eyes. He sighed as his eyes scanned the trees before him.

He wasn't surprised when small tremors occurred, and a large, rock figure slowly began coming upwards from the ground.

After all, he had been waiting for quite some time.

The figure opened its mouth and began to speak in a familiar, deep voice.

"State your identity."

"Hatake Kakashi," his voice rumbled pleasantly in his mask, as he bit his thumb to place a drop of blood on the rock figure's hand. The blood glowed a positive green.

"Update on situation: Haruno Sakura is with us."

With that, the figure crumbled to dust, leaving behind a shocked, wide-eyed Copy Nin in its wake.

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**CLIFFHANGER. DUN DUN DUUUNNNN.**

**And err, yes. This is the lame reason for the seabass nickname. I know, I suck at jokes. T.T I just wanted to make this chapter end on a more lighthearted note. AND DID YOU SPOT DEISAKU'S INDIRECT KISS in the flashback? MUAHAHAHA.**

**Also, I want to add that even though Sakura healed him, it wouldn't be a big problem for her. The Akatsuki has functioned perfectly fine without a medic. It is only when she is Haruno Sakura that they want her... She has a killer reputation for being Tsunade's apprentice.**

**New poll:**

**If you could have one of the Naruto characters for a night/day, who would you pick and what would you do with him/her?**


	11. Ring

**Your responses were pretty funny, I have to admit… You should read those reviews XD I had a good time doing so. And if I were to have someone, it's either be Kakashi or Naruto. Well, I think I'll pick Naruto. He's such a sweetie. : ) It'll be fun to do stuff with him.**

**Anyway, a new (err, filler coughsorrycough) chapter awaits you!**

**00000**

It was odd how this group of men, who were deemed to be extreme, ruthless, killing maniacs, could actually be ordinary beings when they wanted to be.

Sakura stared at her rice bowl, her expression pensive as she held her chopsticks in her right hand, unmoving. She had yet to finish eating, while the rest except Deidara had vacated the kitchen minutes ago. Her mind was, as usual, whirling with thoughts, but this time those thoughts conflicted with each other.

"Ne, Sakura," Deidara called opposite her, waving a hand in front of her face as she blinked. "You okay?"

Concerned azure eyes connected with jade. "Yes, I'm fine. Just thinking," she responded, mustering a half-hearted grin.

"Tsk. Women think too much, yeah," he responded with eyes narrowed. "Stop thinking."

…_How can I?_

"Hm." A noncommittal grunt escaped the pink-haired girl as she forced another spoonful of rice in her mouth, staring moodily at her bowl. Her eyes shot to his frame when he stood up.

"Well, I'm gonna go shower, yeah. Today's sparring made me stink like hell," he sniffed, wrinkling his nose. "And Sakura," he said, his eyes serious. "Stop thinking so much about whatever it is you're thinking about." He shot her a gamely wink before walking out of the kitchen.

Sakura was once again left to her thoughts in silence. In the span of ten minutes she had sat down with the Akatsuki members (yes, they ate _that _fast), she had simply stared at every one of them, studying their movements and their bantering between one another as they ate.

And it was so… normal. The thought gripped her deeply in her chest, giving her a familiar, tugging feeling she hadn't felt in a long time.

The last time she had felt it was the day everything else changed in Konoha.

How could she actually feel some semblance of affection for these people? It was yet another mystery of the heart that she may never understand. Nonetheless, it was a stupid, stupid heart, but it contained so much power and capability to find something good in everyone. And it definitely found a grain of goodness in these people. Somehow, Sakura knew these nins had once been innocent, good, individuals, and somewhere along the line of things, their selves diminished and ugly shells emerged to replace what they used to be.

Briefly, she wondered at what Itachi must have gone through… and Deidara… and Kisame… and Hidan… and Pein. Someday, maybe she'd find out, but at the moment, she knew absolutely nothing, and yet, she _absolutely_ knew with all her heart that they definitely have hearts, just like her.

They were just well-hidden from everyone else. Sakura remembered when Pein had explained his goal of Akatsuki. His eyes flashed with stubborn determination when he spoke and his tone became increasingly softer when speaking of peace… And although his view was warped, he had actually harboured good intentions, doing only what was deemed necessary in his eyes. And he only needed one last person to finish it all, to achieve his longstanding goal.

Sakura gave a bitter, empty laugh, digging into her rice bowl, still deeply immersed in her thoughts. How ironic was it that the person he needed was in front of him all this time?

Her.

Just as Sakura's thoughts were about to embark on a more depressing scale, a familiar chakra flared from behind the kitchen door, as if its possessor wanted to make himself known before entering. Her thoughts were firmly halted and a nonchalant mask was put in place as the Leader of Akatsuki entered the kitchen a few seconds later, with a package in tow.

He spared her a glance and an acknowledging, silent nod before waltzing to the cabinet and opened it. Sakura paused in her eating motions and studied him.

It was either he didn't notice her stare, or simply did not mind it, for he didn't bring it up. Instead, he placed the package near the stove area and reached for what seemed like a tea sachet, its contents making a soft, swishing noise in its movement. His other hand deftly reached for a teacup near the sink and the sachet dropped in it with a soft plop, while he rummaged in the drawers and brought out a teaspoon-

"I'm making some tea. Would you like some, Sakura?" The girl jumped in her seat when he spoke in his usual, courteous manner as he turned towards her, holding a teaspoon in his right hand.

Sakura almost laughed at the sight. She managed to stop short and stood up, giving a genuine smile instead, revealing dimples in both cheeks. "I'll do it myself," she responded. Almost hesitantly (and already regretting the idea of making tea next to him), she walked over to him, who was already pouring boiled hot water from the kettle into his teacup.

She stood behind his imposing figure, catching a whiff of his masculine, woodsy scent before clearing her throat. "Er, excuse me," she mumbled, and he promptly moved to the side to make way for her as she opened the cabinet.

And tried not to panic as she saw the tea sachets on the highest shelf of the cabinet. After a quick internal debate, she leaned against the counter, sighing in a defeatist manner. Proceeding to tiptoe, she extended her arm, her slender fingertips reaching for the sachet that lay closest to her.

She didn't notice the way her red long-sleeved top had stretched upwards with her movement, revealing pale, bare skin and a small, toned waist.

She also didn't notice the way the man's gaze snapped from her face and was suddenly glued to her waist area.

After a moment or two, she gave up. Her pride refused to let her jump like an idiot in front of the man, and she turned to him, her eyes pleading.

His eyes immediately shot up, _far, far away_ from her waist into her eyes as he raised an eyebrow, coolly maintaining his nonchalant expression.

"… A little help?" The pink-haired girl opposite him clasped her hands in front of her, her eyes wide and her lips turning up in an unintentional pout.

Pein tried valiantly not to stare at her lips. Shifting his position to face the cabinet, he reached easily for a tea sachet, handing it to her wordlessly.

"Thank you!" The girl beside him flashed a grateful, dimpled smile as she moved around him, cups clanging and teaspoons clicking in the process. He realized belatedly that he had been stirring his tea for too long and walked over to the dining table, sitting down. A minute later the rosette followed suit, sitting opposite him as she sipped on her tea. Her elbows were placed casually on the table as she held the teacup up to her lips, a thoughtful frown marring her features.

For a moment they sat in companionable silence, neither willing to break the silence as they drank. Then Pein spoke, his ringed, violet eyes landing on her face, his expression seemingly impassive.

"How's your arm and thigh?" His voice was smooth and deep like velvet, and it washed away her thoughts in an instant. She looked at him, their gazes interlocking. Well, that wasn't what she expected of him to ask. A small smile passed through her features.

"It's perfectly fine now," she responded pleasantly, taking a sip of her tea. Steam wafted into the air before her from the teacup, curling and forming little clouds, and she brought the teacup to her lips, watching it absentmindedly.

The man opposite her took in the sight, a smirk growing on his lips. "By the way, congratulations."

Sakura peered from the rim of her teacup, looking at him in surprise. "For?"

"Winning the fight."

She laughed, an amused smile crossing her lips as she sipped on her tea. "Thank you."

He shot her a smirk, and they sat in silence once more.

It was then that her mind decided to plague her with disturbing thoughts of their first encounter, when she had fainted and he had carried her. She flushed a deep red, her mind running with crazy, wild notions of what had happened afterwards.

She decided it was time for her to ask.

"Um… Pein?" She ventured, and received a slightly curious look from the man in response. "Do you remember when I, um, fainted? That day?" Great. She sure sounded confident there. _  
_

Her heart almost leapt out of her ribcage when he shot her an amused look, his lips curling in a smirk. For a moment, he looked breathtakingly handsome like the typical hero in a romance novel. Sakura willed her heart to still, but it was still thudding rebelliously in her chest.

_Damn _hormones.

"I believe I do remember. I had to carry you back to your room," he responded, his smirk still in place.

Sakura unconsciously leaned forward against the table, her knuckles white in gripping her teacup tightly."And? Did anything happen… after?"

"After…?" He asked, a deceptively nonchalant look on his face. "What do you mean, _Sakura?_"

His voice went dangerously, dangerously low when he spoke her name. In fact, it sounded almost… husky.

"I mean… did you _change my clothes_?" Oh god, she was blushing madly like there was no tomorrow. And he wasn't even _intentionally _flirting with her!

Wait. Was he?

At that moment, Sakura didn't even want to _think_ about that possibility.

"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't," he smirked handsomely as he continued to stare at her.

Her breath caught in her throat as she saw his eyes darken visibly before her. She forgot how to speak.

She was lost in a sea of violet and his unique, masculine scent overwhelmed her across the table.

Unbeknownst to her, he was also gripping the teacup tightly, his senses picking up on everything that was _her. _Her jade irises, he noticed, were speckled with darker green flecks, and had never been so expressive till this moment. Her eyes were wide with wonder and curiosity, and a pleasant strawberry scent washed over him, assuaging his senses.

It was in that moment that he knew, he was knee-deep in something he should have seen coming.

He stood up abruptly, breaking the tension. Reaching for the package he had brought in, he walked up to the pink-haired female and placed it gently on the table. She looked up at him from her seat with curious eyes.

He had to fight the urge to _devour_ her then.

"Welcome to Akatsuki," he said softly, his breath a soothing caress on her face.

Then he left, his cloak swishing behind him as he exited the kitchen. Sakura gazed at the black package warily, and began to open it.

Her fingers delved into the torn area, opening the package wider and she sat back on her chair, her heart palpitating for the third time that day as she stared at the object lying before her.

Folded neatly inside was a familiar black cloak, fashioned with red clouds.

Lying on top of it, in all its splendour, was a beautiful, shining white ring.

**000000**

**New poll: What do you find best/admirable about Sakura?**

**I know you want to review and answer this poll. HIT IT GUYS! XD**


	12. Naruto

**I noticed that nobody noticed who the white ring used to belong to… go Wiki it! Go go! Okay not now. Maybe later after this!**

**A whopping new 21 reviews! I am so grateful! Thank you so much you guys! :D Made my day!**

**Without further ado, chapter 12. Enjoy!**

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The pink-haired girl stared at the ring and the cloak numbly. A symbol lay engraved in black over the diamond-like ring as she stared at it.

The symbol spelt 白, and she instantly knew the meaning.

White.

And it was now hers.

A wave of dizziness washed over Sakura for a few seconds, before she mustered enough energy to stand up, teacup in hand, and she walked over to the sink and deposited it.

Deciding that she needed a long, long nap, she picked up the cloak and ring –no, _her _cloak and ring- and walked back to her room, a decidedly melancholy air about her. The corridor was quiet as she passed, and she entered her room without trouble.

Heaving a weary, weary sigh, she placed her newly owned items on the table, opting to sit at the ledge of the window in her room. The cold wooden ledge was large enough for her to curl comfortably on as she sat, her knees tucked close to her chin, her arms wrapping around her knees comfortably. Her tousled hair was brought to rest on her shoulder as she looked out the window. It was a late afternoon, but grey clouds covered the gloomy-looking sky, darkening the view. It was soon followed with a rumble in the sky, breaking the silence permeating in her room.

It was going to rain.

From her point of view, she could see the village bustling with activity despite the rainy weather that was about to befall them. Civilians walked around unhurried, some already snapping their umbrellas open as they shopped and did their daily routines. A group of children laughed as they played with one another.

She wondered what they thought of their leader, Pein. Based on the contented air surrounding the villagers, these civilians seemed to be -ironically- leading a rather peaceful, quiet life… and she had no idea what to think anymore.

She wondered where Naruto was, and how he managed to stay alive. The image of his deathly pale face writhing in pain had been burned deep in her memory, serving as a painful reminder of her failure as a teammate and friend whenever she thought of him. She had spent 3 years thinking he was dead… only to have been proven wrong.

She should have caught on; this was Naruto they were talking about, and he _always_ managed to come out alive in the most precarious events. It was also the fact that they never found his body, but Sai had told her he'd buried him afterwards. It was for him to at least have some peace in the end.

Someone must have taken Naruto afterwards, because Sai certainly wasn't lying when he'd said it. She could tell from the grave, somber look on his face that he'd done it.

Every decision she'd made since Naruto's death led her to think of him. What would he _think_, if he'd seen her studying genetics for that incorrigible bastard Danzou? What would he think, of her as a missing nin? What would he think, of her having to work with the Akatsuki on illegal missions, in spite of the well-kept secret of her being the next jinchuuriki? Sakura's simultaneous answer used to be that he would be rolling in his grave.

At least, it was what she'd thought then. Now, however, was an entirely different matter… He was _alive. _

Sakura was pretty sure he had his reasons for not finding her. She knew him too well; he would have searched high and low for her the second he had recovered from the poisons fully. It was probably a valid reason that stopped him from doing this. She knew he would come find her in due time, eventually.

That said, she missed him terribly. The loss of feeling that developed after his death was slowly dissipating once she knew he was alive, and the familiar, tugging ache had returned, demanding her to see that he was fine, alive and whole.

A sigh escaped her again, and her warm breath painted white fog on the cool windowpane momentarily.

If only he knew what trouble she was in now.

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**Land of Iron.**

A chilling wind blew across the clearing where a man stood tall, towering over another familiar figure, both decked in black with their shinobi headbands conveniently missing. From afar, it looked as though they were engaged in a normal, civil discussion, although it was anything but.

They were yelling at one another rather quietly, and it had developed into a hissing match.

The black-haired ex-student glared daggers at his ex-teacher, as though he was about to explode.

"I _knew_ it-"

"Wait a minute, I-"

"I _knew_ we should have searched for her! At least, we could have passed her a message-"

"Let's talk about this rationally. Okay?" The sitting man raised his hands placatingly, in a slightly defeatist gesture.

He was aware that the longer he sat in front of the irate jounin, the more of a sitting duck he was. With that, he stood up, his hands devoid of a certain book as he tried to placate his ex-student once more. To his disappointment, he was still slightly shorter, giving the angry young adult enough space to still tower over him like a hulk.

"Kakashi-sensei, this is all _your _fault!" Naruto hissed, his hands gesticulating wildly in the air as if he was trying to make the other man understand. "You should have contacted her the _minute _she became a missing nin! She could have lived with the rest of us-"

"Naruto," the other man sighed wearily, running a hair through his black locks. "You know she's a jinchuuriki and although Mifune is a nice person, he would never allow her to live with us here. She is considered a threat to the peace they harbour here, and he's already risking it by sheltering us runaways from Konoha. He was supposed to be neutral towards all countries, yet he's doing this for all of us. We have to be thankful."

The boy's blue eyes dimmed slightly as he processed this with a grim look, but did not stop his angry tirade. "Still! You could have sent her a message to let her know we are alive! Something… anything! I was in a coma for _two _years and I woke up only to know that you _never _told Sakura-chan anything!"

Young men and their impulsiveness. Kakashi momentarily closed his eyes, pinching his nose. Then his eye opened, and when he spoke, it was much calmer. "I cannot risk Mifune's position as a leader of a neutral country by sharing this information. Even if it is only for her ears, information can leak in more ways than one and you know that. We'll get her back once everything is dealt with – there's a time and place for everything. She will be fine; she's an experienced jounin… She can handle herself, as she had done for the past three years. She has never released her Kyuubi chakra or gave away her jinchuuriki status–at least, so far, from what I've heard from our contact," he replied evasively. "_You_, on the other hand, did a much worser job being a jinchuuriki, losing control almost all the time. And this time, Sakura got recruited into Akatsuki because of _you._"

The boy regarded him with a hurt look, but Kakashi knew he had to be as harsh as possible, so he would be more aware that his actions had consequences. He went on. "Remember the incident in Iwagakure three months ago, when we were looking for more scattered Konoha survivors? The man just said something scathing and you took it personally and used your demon chakra."

"He said Sasuke was in the vicinity and he was going to kill him!" Naruto said defensively.

Ah, the sensitive topic that was Sasuke. One day it was going to be the death of them all. Kakashi nodded sagely, and continued to speak. "Nevertheless, he was an overconfident idiot, and you should have just ignored his tauntings, as I did."

"You were using your _Raikiri!_" he glared incredulously at the Copy Nin.

"Ah, but it was better than using your demon chakra, wasn't it?" He responded, tapping a finger thoughtfully on his chin. "Regardless, you lost it, and Pein had sensed it. He decided to recruit Sakura then. So basically, it was _your _fault that she got into this mess."

"But I was… I was just - Argh!" He groaned loudly, raking his fingers through his dyed black hair. He sat down, overwhelmed with emotion.

When he spoke, it was tinged with sadness. "Will Sakura-chan be okay? I mean, Pein hasn't sensed anything on her, right?"

Kakashi sat down beside him in companionable silence. After a while, he spoke, his eyes drawn to the horizon before them. "The sealing was pretty strong, and maybe Tsunade-sama did a double seal. That could explain why he hasn't sensed it. Plus, I think Sakura may have better control of the kyuubi. She does have near-perfect chakra control anyway," he said, his expression pensive. "I think she'll be fine, Naruto." He clapped his hand on the boy's shoulder, who was also staring at the horizon, an almost wistful expression on his face.

He turned to face his sensei, mulling over his thoughts. Then he spoke.

"Yeah… I guess you right Kaka-sensei. After all, this is Sakura-chan we're talking about! She's the best in chakra control, right!" He shot the other man a cheery grin, though it seemed halfhearted.

"Besides…" His ex-sensei continued, his expression brightening considerably. "Think of what will happen when we overthrow Danzou, eh? You, me, Gai, Kiba, Kurenai, _Neji _and the rest… It'll be a blast. Then we can get Sakura-chan back after that."

Naruto smiled at the thought. He couldn't wait for that moment to come.

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**And so Naruto hath spoken. Many people have gone through the battle unscathed unlike the picture painted for Sakura and the rest. How did they escape? How are they still alive? Ehehe. And who's the damn contact? I think it's glaringly obvious… (Ba-dum-tss)**

**AND NEJI IS ALAAAAAIIIIVE. (Ba-dum-ba-dum)**

**For anyone confused over what happened during Danzou's infiltration, in Sakura's eyes, Naruto died during the sealing and Sai had told her that he buried him. Which is true. But someone intercepted him afterwards, and somehow, he was alive, being attended to by someone until he woke up from his coma which lasted 2 long years...that's all I'm saying at the moment. Many people were said to have died but did not.**

**I had to share a little of Sakura's thoughts. They were just a chunk out of the many that are running through her head now. I hope this chapter is okay. Let me know if there's something amiss kay. ****白 ****(Bya) means white, by the way.**


	13. Window

**Hey guys. I'm super thankful for your reviews! Thank you so so much. They keep me going. **

**And I apologize. I am unable to do the mission part on time, other things were necessary first. **

**Your answers will come in due time, not to worry:D**

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"Sakura-san. Wake up."

Oh_ shit._

Sakura shot up immediately from her sleeping position on the window on instinct, her jade eyes unfocused but riddled with alarm. Unfortunately, her senses still had not informed her of her body dangling precariously off the window ledge and she fell onto the ground in an undignified heap, and she gave a muffled curse in the process, blowing pink hair away from her face.

Her eyes immediately noticed the feet just inches from her nose, and her head shot up to notice the figure standing before her, his red eyes regarding her with a look of mild amusement.

Giving an exhausted groan, she propped her elbows on the ground and made a motion to stand, her muscles cramping painfully from her sleeping on the window. She stole a glance at the view outside the window and noticed the faint chirping noises signifying an early morning, and a slowly rising sun. Much to her consternation, she realised that she had actually slept _overnight_ on the window.

Great. Just… great.

"Itachi-san," she tried to respond, but much to her horror, it ended up being a hoarse-sounding croak. She noticed the man giving her an undisguised smirk, and tried not to jump at his extremely close resemblance to her old teammate then. For all she knew, the annoying man was just trying to unsettle her.

The fact that she didn't know how she looked at that moment – for all she knew, her hair was probably all over the place, her clothes unkempt and her breath smelled. Clearing her throat self-consciously and raking a hand through her hair, she tried to speak again.

"Itachi-san, what are you doing here in my room? There's something called… _privacy_."

The man standing before her was decked in his usual black shinobi attire. His arms were, as usual, casually folded and his hair was tied in its usual ponytail as he regarded her with Sharingan eyes.

He gave her another infuriating smirk as he spoke. "I tried knocking, Sakura-san, but it appears you were in too much of a deep sleep."

Sakura scowled at his statement, which only seemed to fuel his amusement. "Well? Why are you here then?"

"We have a mission."

Sakura's heart almost stopped at his statement.

"What kind?" Her mask had slipped back in place, her tone showing only a slight interest in the mission as she spoke. However, inwardly she was in turmoil, her panic rising higher by the second. Had they found Naruto already? Had Pein ordered them to get him now?

Inwardly, Sakura steeled herself. Even if they did find Naruto, he would be fine. He wasn't a jinchuuriki any longer and they would have no reason to hurt him.

Her story, on the other hand, would result in an ending that was a polar opposite to Naruto's.

"A normal mission. We are short on funds."

Sakura relaxed, her shoulders sagging imperceptibly. "What's it about?" She prompted, raising a curious eyebrow.

"We haven't decided yet. It needs to be the one that can be done quickly, yet garner the most amount of money. All teams have been mobilized," he responded evenly, his eyes boring into hers.

"Teams…" Sakura's brow furrowed as she digested his words. "You mean, both Deidara and Tobi, and Hidan, need to gather funds too?"

The stoic man gave a stiff nod. Sakura thinned her lips into a grim line, mulling over the possibility of joining Deidara and Tobi's team instead. It was not that she couldn't get along with Kisame and Itachi, but it was more of her need to try to figure out Tobi's ulterior motives about her. Plus, she knew Deidara's and Tobi's fighting skills like the back of her hand.

As though the Uchiha could read her mind, he spoke, his voice taking an odd firm tone. "_You_ will be joining _my_ team Sakura-san. You are needed to heal my eyes, as we have spoken earlier."

"Okay," she muttered, running her hands through her hair as she shot him a look. He had sounded oddly possessive in his previous response.

"When are we heading out?" She asked, already making her way to her desk, packing her items neatly into her usual brown pack.

"As soon as Pein-sama gets back," he replied evenly.

"Oh. Get back from?"

"Visiting Konan's grave." Sakura's hands stilled in its movements, her body tense as she slowly turned to regard him with a sombre expression.

"Oh." It was all she could say, and silence reigned upon the two of them as she continued her packing, although at a much slower pace this time. Itachi watched her movements as he stood near her. Her eyes drifted to the ring lying innocently on the table, and she picked it up to bring it to scrutinize it at eye-level, watching its shimmery brilliance. She turned to Itachi, arching a curious eyebrow as she waved her hand holding the ring.

"Which finger do I wear it on? Can I just wear it on any finger?" She enquired, and noticed Itachi's body stiffen as he noticed the ring. Slowly, his eyes travelled back to her, and if she hadn't been watchful, she would not have noticed the mild expression of shock flitting across his face.

It took a few seconds for him to respond, his voice deceptively casual. "That ring is meant for your right middle finger."

Sakura wasn't fooled by his tone. "Who did this ring belong to previously, Itachi-san?" she demanded, frowning.

This time, however, he gave no hint of his previous surprise, as though his mask had already slipped back on. Instead, he gave her a smirk, as though he was enjoying her discomfort and unease. Sakura tapped her feet impatiently, waiting for his response as he suddenly developed a case of temporary deafness.

"Well? If you're not going to answer me, Itachi-san, I can bother someone else about it," she retorted.

"It belonged to Konan's," he supplied smoothly, and his eyes seemed to show his amusement as Sakura's mouth half-opened in shock.

It was just then that they heard angry noises coming from the corridor, and Kisame and Deidara barged in, their faces red as though they had been in a shouting match.

"Sakura-" "Pinky-" They shouted simultaneously, and stopped, glaring at each other. They didn't seem to notice Itachi in the room in their anger.

"-For the love of _god_! Doesn't anyone knock around here?" Sakura snapped, her tone exasperated.

The two seemed to ignore her statement, opting to speak. "Pinky, this little _brat _here thinks you should be working with him. Can you _please _tell him that you have to work with us to heal that Uchiha's eyes?" The blue man pointed at the stoic man in the room, his eyes ablaze with frustration.

"Who the fuck are you calling brat, yeah?" Deidara shot back, his expression furious. "And for your information, I have been working with her for two fucking years, so it's a _damn_ good reason for her to be on my team!"

"I'd like to see you talk to Leader about it," Kisame sneered, and that was when Sakura had enough.

"Enough!" she barked, gesturing her hands wildly. "Your arguments are invalid unless you bring them up with Pein! Why did you come to me for?"

And, with her waving hands, everyone's eyes in the room came to settle on the object she was holding, their eyes growing wider by the second as the shouting pair was officially stunned into silence.

It was then that Hidan sauntered in, his scythe in his hand as per normal as he whistled a nondescript tune. "Bitch, you sure know how to start a ruckus," he said, grinning widely at her. Then he noticed the other members had fallen uncharacteristically quiet.

"What the fuck are you guys staring at?" He retorted, rolling his eyes until they landed on her hand.

Sakura was sweating buckets. She should have hidden the ring the second Deidara and Kisame entered the room. She was _doomed._

"Holy shit! Is that Konan's ring?" Hidan yelled excitedly, walking to her as he snatched the ring out of her suddenly jelly-like hand, and proceeded to scrutinize it.

In the midst of everything, Itachi slinked out of the room like the slimeball he was, leading her to the inevitable torturous questions and deductions that would follow.

"It's… Konan's ring? You got her ring, yeah?" Deidara had snapped out of this stupor, looking at her rather worriedly. "Why did you get her ring? Weren't there others for you to pick?"

If Sakura was her usual observant self at that time, she would have noticed Deidara's slightly jealous tone. However, her mind was awashed with panic, her body standing deathly still. Her voice was suddenly mute as a mortified expression crossed her features.

"Oh no," Kisame flashed her a grin, baring his sharp teeth. "_Leader _gave this to her. Since when were we able to choose, eh brat?"

Hidan piped in excitedly. "Maybe Pein likes his girls with white nails," he laughed gleefully, and Sakura's faced turned red in an instant.

It was red with anger.

"EVERYONE OUT! NOW!" She roared and in her anger, she barely noticed her fists flashing an occasional green. The others, however, had noticed, and thankfully had a sense of self-preservation in them as they dashed out of the room and closed the door.

Somehow, the event had reminded her of her needing to inform Gaara of her whereabouts. Pein was momentarily gone, and she didn't need to worry about his sensor abilities.

With ninja-level speed, she whipped out an ordinary-looking empty scroll and an odd-looking pen Sai had given to her, scribbling a message.

_Gaara, I'm with A. A suspects fox alive. I am fine. N is alive. Look for him._

With a set of handseals, the words jumbled together to form an ordinary, brown sparrow, and she opened her window, letting it fly out.

0000000

**Hey guys! Minor changes to the Akatsuki ring thingies. The owner of a specific ring colour will have nails of that colour and not the usual black or purple. I thought it'd make things more interesting.****.**

**And now she knows it is KONAN'S ring. HEHEHEHEHE.**

**New poll: Which moment in the anime is funniest for you? If there is a YouTube vid, write down the title of the video and hit the review button below!;)**


	14. Leaf

**GUYS! If you are interested in joining the community I'm involved with on this website, simply go to my profile page and scroll down. Beside my favourite authors and stories is a Community tab. Click on it and you'll see that the community hosts an interesting array of SakuraxAkatsuki stories :D Yep, they're all lovely for a good read. Remember to join!**

**For me, my funniest moment will be Neji and Gai- Stare of Teamwork. Youtube it if you're interested. ("Hmmmmmmm")**

**000000000 PLEASE LOOK AT THE POLL BELOW AFTER THIS CHAPTER.**

**3 years ago, night before everything changed.**

"Ne, Sai, pass me the salt! Stop hogging it!"

"Certainly, Dickless," Sai responded pleasantly, a smile pasted on his face.

"Dickless? Why, you bas-"

"Okay, stop it guys. I did not invite you to my house for dinner for you to ruin it," their only pink-haired member said sternly as she shot warning glares at both parties, chewing on a piece of onigiri at the same time. Her jade eyes travelled to the other members sitting silently at the table and she raised an eyebrow.

"Ne, Kakashi-sensei, Yamato-taichou… not going to eat?"

A deep, rumbling laughter came from her ex-sensei while he flipped a page of his book, his elbows propped lazily on the table as he continued reading. Much to Sakura's chagrin, her question did not prompt him to resolve his hold on it.

"Sakura-chan, I have already eaten." With widened eyes, both Naruto and Sakura stood up abruptly from their seats to peer at his bowl.

He hadn't been lying. It was already completely empty.

A chuckle escaped Yamato as he observed the two dumbstruck ex-students. Picking up his chopsticks, he said his usual "Itadakimasu" before digging in.

"By the way, you have become a really good cook, Sakura-chan. I enjoyed the meal very much," Kakashi informed her cheerily. A friendly, crinkled eye focused in the pink-haired jounin's direction and she beamed in response.

"Me too, Sakura-chan! I really enjoyed it. Almost better than ramen," Naruto's voice was muffled as he spoke between mouthfuls and he shot a rice-filled grin at his old crush.

"I might have to agree too. I remember eating your burnt rice about a year ago. You have improved, Hag," Sai informed her with pleasant cheer.

"Same here, Sakura," Yamato nodded, still tucking in to her food.

"Aw, guys." The rosette's features lit up in a smile. She paused in her eating for an instant, a fond look in her eyes as she scanned her teammates. "I wanted to make it different this time, you know? I know we usually eat out once a fortnight to meet up, but I thought it'd be nice to have the gathering at someone's house. And since I felt like cooking this time, it'll be best to have it at my place."

"Well, thank goodness your cooking skills improved, Hag. Otherwise, I wouldn't have lived through the first ten seconds of this dinner."

"Keep talking like that and you won't even last ten seconds now," she replied, smiling sweetly at her ex-ROOT teammate. Chuckles escaped from the other three who had been listening in.

Propping her elbows on the table, Sakura rested her chin on clasped hands as she surveyed her teammates with a smile on her face. She had never felt so satisfied at that point, watching them eat together. Granted, there was one person missing, a hole present in the old Team Seven's hearts, but it was something she had to live with… because it was the choice he'd made.

Ever since meeting Sasuke in Orochimaru's underground base, Team Seven had almost drifted apart, with everyone left to their own thoughts. Sakura, in particular, was the most devastated.

She cried for months, knowing her old love was gone for good.

And when she realised it was tearing her team apart, it took a huge amount of effort for her to pick herself up, and urge the rest to do the same. She started with Naruto and Kakashi, asking for training and sparring sessions. It was then that Sai and Yamato were roped in as well.

Then came Sakura's idea of having eating sessions once a fortnight. It was a brilliant idea, and the new and old members of her team had gelled since then.

With a contented sigh, she watched as the other members stood up one by one, Yamato and Naruto offering to wash the dishes while Kakashi and Sai set up the game table for a game of Riichi mahjong. A satisfied smile crossed her lips as she idly watched Kakashi explaining to Sai about the game while Sai listened intently, and hearing Naruto's tone-deaf singing from the kitchen.

It was a great night, and Sakura couldn't wait for the next gathering with the group.

She didn't know then that it would have been her very last one.

0000000

The rosette walked on a tree branch upside down, her hair coming down in slim, wavy locks. She was decked in her usual black nin attire, her boots scraping against the tree bark as she walked with her eyes closed.

With a small sigh, she deftly jumped away from the branch to land onto the solid earth. Her eyes scanned the clearing as she mulled over what to do next. She had been rather bored waiting for Pein to return ever since she sent Gaara the message, and had opted to take a breath of fresh air outside. The other members had been lounging in the entrance hall, Hidan playing pool with Kisame and Deidara sculpting clay. Itachi, as supplied by Kisame, was meditating in his room.

Clearing away leaves from the ground, Sakura proceeded to sit in a cross-legged position with her back to a tree, her hands idly twirling her pink hair to make a simple side plait, loose wavy curls framing both sides of her face. Humming softly, she rested her head against the tree trunk, watching grey clouds crawl across the sky. For a moment, she could imagine she was in a different place and time, where she could have absolutely nothing to worry about. A place where she could rewind time, maybe… or at least, see the people she could never see again.

As those thoughts receded like a low-tidal wave, her eyelids grew heavier and she began to fall asleep.

000000

"Sakura." For the second time that day, the girl's head shot up like lightning, her alert eyes scanning the surroundings.

"Relax Sakura. It's just me." The calm, baritone voice spoke again. With that, Sakura noticed as a hooded figure jumped from the branch above her and landed gracefully before her, the piercings on his face glinting from the sunlight. Lowering his hood to reveal orange hair, he crouched before her, the sun enveloping his figure like a halo.

"Oh. Um. Hi?" Sakura found, to her horror, that her voice was raspy from disuse once again. She took an involuntarily deep breath at their closeness and smelt sandalwood and musk, and was inevitably drawn in. Outwardly, she only showed her wariness at their closeness, choosing to keep the fact that she loved his scent to herself for whatever modicum of self-preservation she had left.

Jade eyes interlocked with violet ones, and she was shocked when he actually gave a chuckle of amusement. "You must have been out here long," he said, a faint smile on his lips as he regarded her with amusement.

"How do you know?" She responded, her voice still uncertain as she studied the man crouching before her. He had knelt on one knee while his hand was resting on the other as he watched her, his cloak billowing in the breeze.

Her eyes widened imperceptibly as he leaned closer, his hand reaching out towards her. Instinctively, her legs shifted from her cross-legged position, trying to back away but she found that she couldn't. She looked at him, alarmed, as he seemed to come even closer, his eyes unreadable.

What was he playing at?

His hand brushed her hair ever so softly, and withdrew, as his breath landed on her face in a gentle caress, blowing loose strands of pink hair away from her face.

Her breath hitched.

"You have a leaf in your hair," he informed her in a matter-of-fact manner, and Sakura's shoulders sagged slightly as mixed feelings of relief and disappointment overcame her.

Wait a minute… why was she feeling _disappointed_?

Sakura could only nod dumbly as she mentally tried to process that nugget of information. Just as she was figuring out why she was actually feeling that way, he spoke again.

"You should try not to lose it," he said, still watching her intently.

Silence ensued.

"Lose what?" Sakura found herself asking curiously, raising an eyebrow.

He studied her again, and she tried not to fidget under his gaze. Then his hand moved to his pocket and brought a small object out. A familiar, white ring glimmered in the sunlight and her eyes widened as she recognised it instantly.

"Oh my god- I thought I placed it in my pocket! It must have fallen when I was upside down. Oh my- I'm so sorry," she apologised profusely, her hands coming up in an apologetic gesture.

She never expected what came next.

A gentle hand took her outstretched right palm, and she felt the rough ridges on his palm as he rested her hand in his. With extreme gentleness, he proceeded to insert the white ring on her middle finger, his eyes focused on her hand.

Sakura found that she couldn't move. Her hand tingled from where he touched her, making a rippling sensation coursing through her entire body. Shuddering involuntarily, she watched as the ring slid up her finger so slowly, and her nails painlessly turned a pure white. Her eyes widened in fascination as she observed her ivory fingernails, a stark contrast against his purplish-grey ones. Her eyes shot up, and she went breathless as darkened violet eyes met hers. Her throat suddenly went dry.

Something was going to happen, whether she liked it or not.

But… she would damn well try her best to stop it.

They were from opposite sides of the world, in more ways than one. She was a jinchuuriki, and he was an infamous terrorist who wanted the demon within her. Nothing, not even attraction, can come in the way of her values. She had sworn to prevent the demon from reaching the wrong hands… and it would not matter if she died doing so. It was her duty, and she had to stick to it.

So she said the most killjoy-like statement she could think of at that moment.

"You visited Konan's grave."

His eyes turned grim and serious, and he finally withdrew his hand, and Sakura found herself missing its warmth almost instantly.

"Aa. I miss her presence," he said, his voice deep with a slightly anguished undertone. His eyes remained unreadable as they flickered away from her, as if deep in thought. "She used to be there to remind me of what I lived for, and what I promised to bring to this world."

Sakura studied him intently, her eyes scrutinizing his handsome tan features. "And what is it that you promised to bring?"

His violet eyes flickered back to her, and his tone became wistful. "I promised to bring peace to this world. There is too much pain, too much suffering… People dying for no reason, innocent children losing their parents… Seeing it with my own eyes has urged me to do something about it. When Konan was gone, I swore that I would never let the goal out of my sight. I would do my best to stop the pain people have been feeling."

It was then that Sakura's mouth decided to impulsively run on its own accord, her mind unable to process the enormity of what she said until after she had said it. Her voice escaped her in barely more than a whisper.

"What about _your_ pain?"

Silence reigned over the two as his eyes interlocked with her jade, hesitant ones. For a long, long moment, they stared at each other, each of them trying to decipher the other's thoughts.

Then a loud shout rang across the clearing, and Pein stood up gracefully, putting some space between them as their eyes focused on the visitor, standing at the entrance door to the base.

"Leader, you're back!" Kisame flashed a grin at Sakura and winked, making her groan inwardly. Just how much had he been watching? His Samehada was strapped to his back and he was already dressed in his Akatsuki cloak.

"I guess we can call the rest to start moving," Kisame said simply, turning away from the pair as he started walking back inside the base's entrance.

"I will follow. I need to speak to Tobi first," he murmured softly only for her ears, his eyes trained on her as she looked at him. She nodded, and with a seemingly satisfied look, he disappeared in flurry of leaves, leaving her finally alone to her thoughts.

The prevalent thought running through her mind attacked her with such ferocity, that she knocked the back of her head against the tree trunk with a groan, closing her eyes.

What in the world was _happening _to her?

**0000000**

**I have another change. It's been planned that while Nagato will have his Sage of Six Paths mode, he transferred his soul into Pein, therefore he is in Pein. He will, however, be able to control the other bodies but he (Pein) will not be able to move when he is doing so, like how Nagato was. So… err… basically it's Sage of Five Paths, in a manner of speaking. I just preferred it that way, because Pein is ten times healthier and hotter than Nagato. Lol.**

**If you guys did not understand that, no matter. It will come out in due time. **

**I loved their interaction in this one. I just had the image of him crouching down in my mind as he talked to her, the sun behind him forming a halo around his figure. It's so..antihero-like.**

**I love antiheroes, especially hot ones. (smiles contentedly)**

**If you love this chapter, hit the review button! Encouragement is really appreciated. If there's any mistakes, please do not hesitate to tell me!**

**VERY IMPORTANT POLL: Should the ending of this story be a dramatic one (as planned) or a happy one? Initially, I have planned a rather dramatic storyline and I have already fixed the ending. But as the story progresses, I'm not sure if it's what you guys would appreciate. **

**So, if you guys appreciate a _dramatic flair_ in Dunamis Tes Athena, _please review so_. If not, _please state that you will prefer a happy, non-complex ending_. **

**In the end, I will still choose the ending, but you should state your reasons for choosing either way to make me understand your case. I am in a dilemma.. Anyway hit the review button below and tell me what you think!**


	15. Tea

**Interesting review below. Hurhur.**

**Guest: Okaaaay. So Sakura has her godlike chakra control, a doujutsu, multiple Kekkai genkai like Hyouton and Mokuton, and she still is a little bitch running away and getting captured by (what I assume will be ) her future male harem?**

**Talk about both under and overpowered at the same time.**

**Seriously, I can tolerate critiques that are forward and direct. But your review went a little overboard with the "little bitch" part, which is, in my opinion, _wholly _unnecessary. (Seriously, if you hate Sakura and hate harem fics, why are you reading a Sakura x Akatsuki fic? Mindblown. Ba-dum-tss.) It even made me falter in my writing a little, because it was my first flame. And in response to your non-question, no it's not a harem, it's a love triangle between Sakura, Deidara and Pein (though Neji is in the picture now and I'm still trying to fit the pieces to his puzzle). And Sakura got captured because yes, despite her kekkei genkai and doujutsu and her "godlike" chakra control, she has very little chakra reserves, which I guess you missed reading earlier. So yeah, she's not going to use the Kyuubi's chakra when she runs out of hers unless she wants to die an early death in the Akatsuki's hands (Pein is a sensor, he can sense chakra from very very far FYI), hence she exhausted her own personal reserve and collapsed, and was in a chakra binding seal the rest of the time. So yeah… it's difficult not to get captured, if you actually read that part.**

**So anyway, I hope you finally get it now! And thank you for your review which could have been helpful if it wasn't laced with sarcasm and Hidan-like words.**

**Jjangqueen: Nononooo, I should end up with Kakashi XD**

**KiraTokyRIckiSalvatore: You sound like a true writer when you said that! :D Wise words my friend!**

**organizationkhII: No problem, though I think it didn't work much D: I'm so sorry! And ooo, I've never read a Kisame X Hinata fanfic before. Sounds cool!**

**Anonymous: Thank you so much! And yeah I agree… I shall just hope for the best :D**

**Sarah: Well… I'll try to make it both, see what I can do : D**

**Katara-Hatake: Thank you! And I knew you were going to pick the dramatic one! :D And yeah I mean that scene was totally priceless. Super funny Gai vs super pissed off Neji XD**

**Guest: Thank you! Enjoy this one!**

**DiamondForest: thank you :D I looked back and the chapter and I realised you were right! I included a lot of colours and lighting inside for some odd reason. And a dramatically happy ending! I'll see what I can do, and you're right… it will satisfy both sides. Enjoy this one! :D**

**Maiikaulitz: An ending that fits the story! :D Somehow it sounds flattering to my ears! Thank you and enjoy this one! :D**

**VenezuelaHills: Thank you so much! Enjoy this one yeah! :D**

**Scarlett Winds: (gushes) If only we could have Pein in another life… XD And thank you for your faith in my choosing the ending! I really am thankful for your support. :')**

**Shadow Wolf: Thank you many berries! :D Yay! Enjoy this one!**

**DontWaitUpForMe: Bring it on XD I see, I see (strokes chin) And chyeah you made my day when you said a simple ending won't do DTA justice XD Thank you and enjoy this one!**

**KurayamiEra: Thank you so much :D HEHE. And I shall choose an ending! XD Enjoy this one!**

**Akatsukigirl1223: Thank you! Enjoy this one! :D I will try my best!**

**Femi: hehe well I'm glad you liked it!:D**

**DeidaraGaaraGirls: thank you! You are awesome for reviewing!:D **

**Angel897: thank youuuu:)**

**Shadow Owner: ah, the hood (pauses) Err. Mistake there ehehe. Well I realised having interactions are difficult. Sigh. Thanks for pointing things out! I pondered over them and tried to (?) rectify it by this chapter that hopefully explains why Pein is like that toward Sakura. shouldn't have gone too fast! Thanks a lot!:D**

**So… apart from the interesting review above, I am really thankful and encouraged by your continual support. It drives me on even when I'm feeling down, and so, thank you thank you thank you. (smiles widely)**

**Without further ado, Chapter 15.**

**000000**

**The day she was captured.**

The orange-haired enigma's Rinnegan eyes were focused on the chained figure in the other room, his gaze piercing and unmoving. Beside him stood an equally unreadable man, his gaze impassive as he looked through the see-through window that, to a non-doujutsu individual, would show only darkness. The panel was also designed in a way that no one in the room would be able to see who was on the other side of the glass.

The tomoe in one of the men's crimson eyes spinned lazily as he scanned the room.

They watched as an Akatsuki member briskly exit the room afterwards, a grim and rather furious frown marring his features. He spared the Uchiha a glare that could shoot daggers, before turning his slightly cold eyes to the Leader.

"She is chained, yeah. Please don't hurt her…" he spoke in an odd tone devoid of his usual warmth, his voice revealing fury underneath as he chose to leave the rest of his sentence unspoken. _Or else. _

"I do not plan to hurt her, Deidara. You may calm down. I need her services, her medical proficiencies, and killing will be unnecessary. And you should remember who you serve before you retaliate," Pein informed him, his eyes hardening as his voice took a steely tone.

Before Deidara could respond, a masked man came into view from the corridor, exclaiming happily. "Deidara-sempai, don't worry! We are just using her as bait for the jinchuuriki!"

Azure eyes hardened as they settled on his partner, the reason behind all the mess. "And… what? You expect her to just say okay to joining us after saying that fact, yeah?"

It was then that Itachi pitched in, his voice taking its usual clinical tone. "She does not have to know about it." It was typical of him to say just a simple statement, yet it was enough to diffuse the tension as Deidara gave Pein a stiff nod as he walked away from the corridor.

When they had ascertained Deidara's presence was long gone, the duo resumed their conversation, with Tobi peeking excitedly through the see-through window like a small boy.

"She will know of our plan," Itachi informed Pein, still staring at the unconscious figure through the glass.

"Aa, that I am aware," the man mused, his expression pensive. After a while, he spoke again. "She will not be able to refuse joining, anyway. Not unless she has a death wish."

"Hn."

"Regardless, I will still be nice to her. She will be one of us, and it is my duty as Leader to welcome her," Pein continued, his voice calm and his tone final.

The Uchiha gave the orange-haired man a slightly curious glance, but kept his thoughts to himself.

It was a well-known fact in Akatsuki that Pein had not been cordial to most of them when he recruited them.

"Excuse me," he murmured, and with an acknowledging nod from Pein, he walked out of the corridor, leaving the man and Tobi behind. His eyes flashed with an indecipherable emotion as his mind swirled with thoughts, and his gaze turned calculating as he decided on his next course of action.

It was time to inform his contact of this... update.

000000

It was a minute later when Itachi had left, that Tobi reverted to his other self, his voice taking a frighteningly deep and cold tone as he spoke while facing Pein.

"You do not have to be so… cordial with the girl," the masked man said coldly, tilting his head stiffly as he studied the Rinnegan user.

Violet eyes surveyed him coolly, unperturbed. "She is an Akatsuki member, and will be treated as such."

A deep, chilling laugh escaped the masked man, and his tone sounded amused. "Why, Pein, I see you are getting soft. You have never been nice to the rest when they entered this organization. Pray tell… is it because she's a _girl_?" His tone took an uncharacteristically biting edge at his last sentence.

"Or is it because… she reminds you of _Konan_?"

Pein's blood ran cold at that statement. His eyes shone with unadulterated fury as his hands instinctively shot out to grab the masked man's neck to pin him to the wall. However, the man dodged his move easily, his reflexes quick as lightning. He chuckled, drawing a kunai from his sleeve.

"Too slow."

"Do not even _speak _of her," the Rinnegan user hissed, his eyes hardened. "It was your fault she got killed! We could have done the extraction when we were all in this base, but you wanted to do it _immediately_!"

"Ah, well. How was I supposed to know the base she was at would be ambushed?" He drawled, twirling the kunai idly on his finger. "Anyway, it was over a year ago, no? All we need now is the Kyuubi… and you will achieve your long-awaited goal. Wouldn't that be a nice day…" With that, the mysterious masked man reverted back to his old self, skipping happily down the corridor and leaving the still heavily breathing man to his thoughts.

Closing his eyes and calming himself, he raked his hand through his hair and exhaled. Violet eyes snapped open, and he looked at the figure in the room, huddled on the ground and almost devoid of chakra.

With a jolt, he realized she was awake, and seemed to be staring at him through the panel. For a moment, he saw a flash of light blue hair and amber eyes, but it was soon gone as the pink-haired girl's gaze moved away from him, her panicked jade eyes scanning the darkness blindly.

He still remembered one of his last conversations with his late lover. They had arrived at the base in Iwagakure, and had taken refuge there for three, long days because of an impending snowstorm.

They had sat down on the tatami mat in the hall, sipping tea and watching the snow outside whip precariously at the windows.

_The cerulean-haired girl studied him with a small smile on her face, occasionally sipping on her tea. After a moment, her smile faltered, and she placed her teacup on the floor with a clink, causing her partner to snap out of his musings._

"…_What is it?" He asked gently, as he noticed a growing frown on her features. _

_The frown deepened and for a brief moment, she had an anguished look, before schooling her features once more, giving him a shaky smile. "Ne, promise me something, will you?"_

"_Anything," he responded automatically, his hand moving to clasp hers and stroke her palm comfortingly._

_The girl took a deep breath, and gave him a small, sad smile. Then she murmured, her voice almost too soft for him to hear with her head bowed. But he'd heard._

"_Promise me that no matter what, you'll always try to find happiness. Even if I'm not around anymore."_

_Fingers tipped her chin slightly, and he gazed at his long-time partner with a fond look in his eyes, as though memorizing her features. _

"_Just promise me," she whispered, her breath tickling his face and he inhaled the scent of jasmine._

"_I promise," he responded, his eyes never straying from hers._

_Her fingers grasped his even more tightly._

With a forlorn sigh, he turned away from the glass panel and started walking away.

000000

**Present day.**

Sakura sighed as she idly jumped from branch to branch, her feet deftly picking up speed as her two new partners did the same. Her Akatsuki cloak ruffled almost violently against the wind caused by her movement, but she kept her pace, unperturbed. She had tried on the Akatsuki cloak earlier, and found -to her pleasure- that it was not loose and large, but tailor-made to suit her figure, and, as a result, still gave her a feminine look while she wore it. Hence, it wasn't too bulky for her to don while travelling, and she was thankful for that, for it could have hindered her movements.

Her chakra levels were nowhere near Kisame's and Itachi's, so she was relieved when they slowed their pace through the night, and when the moon had fully risen, they made a motion to stop travelling, jumping down from the trees once Itachi had scouted the area to set up camp.

She watched as Itachi set up a small fire after declaring that there was no one within ten miles. For a moment, she marvelled at his efficiency, her eyes growing wide with admiration as she watched him sitting across the fire. Then she realized who she was admiring.

Disgust roiled in her stomach as she looked away.

"Not going to eat, kunoichi?" Kisame spoke between mouthfuls, gulping down his ration in his usual manner while beady eyes watched her almost worriedly.

Sakura poked at her ration in distaste, a disgusting, brown soup concoction, but proceeded to chug it with her eyes closed. After managing not to gag, she took a few sips of her water and noticed Kisame giving her a thumbs up and a wide grin.

"And that is how a kunoichi should eat, if you ask me."

000000

**Tomorrow marks the beginning of the second month since my story was posted. A big thank you to all reviewers, you guys are awesome! You guys are a great support!**

**I'm sorry I have to end it here… I was reaaaaalllly busy. Seriously.**

**And thank you for telling me your views. I have decided. :D**

**I included a flashback here to show why Pein acts the way he is when it comes to Sakura. Hope you guys get it... (quite unsure about this one) If anything is missing, do tell me! Thank you guys for reading. : )**

**Question: What do you like most about Kisame?**


	16. Singing

**Hello Awesomes... Thank you, thank you, thank you for reviewing! (insert heart shaped bubble here) :D**

**KagomeAngel91: Ah yes… A drunk Kisame leads to hilarious consequences XD And try not to think of the brown gravy!**

**Black n' Blue sun: Yes, I like blue too :D**

**Anonymous: Glad to know it helped shed some light on the issue. Hehe :D**

**Shadow Wolf: Thank you :D**

**Delilah-smurple: Hahaha sexiest fish LOL! Well that's true… :D**

**Sarah: Thank you :DD**

**organizationkhII: Hehe yeah. The problem though is making the sparks fly in a more realistic way… I think I have trouble there. And yeah he's one adept Mist shinobi! :D**

**DontWaitUpForMe: So true. He's a real unique guy, like all the other Akatsuki members who are unique in their own ways. Enjoy this one! : )**

**KurayamiEra: Haha thank you so much :D I love Gai and Lee too!**

**Onigirixdango: Sure thing! :D I shall have to remember that!**

**KiraTockyRickiSalvatore: Thanks! And yeah he's funny XD**

**Katara-Hatake: I love his sword too. And yeah they were lovers : ) Hehehe.**

**BornVillain: Hi there! :D There will be more scenes in the future! And yeah Kisame and Itachi go very well together as partners!**

**Jjangqueen: Brown stuff is good for you. You should try it sometime, sista :D Don't forget to flush afterwards, HAHA.**

**Carol: Hi! And yeah, instead of tall, dark and handsome, it's tall blue and sexy that's trending now… XD**

**Without further ado, Chapter 16. Enjoy!**

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Sakura exhaled, running a hand through her locks as she surveyed the room key lying on her hand. Her muscles were weary from strenuous travelling and were now aching badly, as though screaming for rest. She glanced at Kisame and Itachi, who seemed to be in the same mood as her.

"Damn, I can't wait to bathe. Maybe even soak in a huge tub for a long, long time," Kisame complained as they trudged up the stairs of the inn they were staying at. The stairs creaked noisily as they went up, especially under the Mist nin's weight.

"Whoa, Kisame. You're acting like a water-starved seabass," Sakura jibed in good cheer, and she noticed a smirk curling on Itachi's lips as he heard it.

"Am not! Itachi, can you please tell Pinky over here that her jokes are getting old? She keeps calling me Seabass over and over again."

Sakura poked him in the ribs. "And you call me Pinky!"

"You have _pink _hair! That totally justifies the nickname!" Kisame shot back.

"And you have _gills_!" With that, Sakura let out a peal of laughter, rushing into her room before Kisame could even think about throttling her.

The two men stood outside her room, watching her door close, one with a fond smile on his blue face, while the other appeared pensive as usual.

Both had their respective thoughts, but were thinking about the same kunoichi who had just entered their lives not too long ago.

"Ne, Itachi?" Kisame spoke up after a while. "I have a feeling she'll make a nice addition to our team."

"Hn."

With that, the duo went inside the room lying just next to their new partner's room, their black and red cloaks swishing behind their backs.

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**Land of Iron.**

A yellow-haired figure sat atop a tree, on a branch, meditating with his eyes closed. After a long while, his body relaxed with a soft exhale and his eyelids snapped open to reveal startling azure eyes. A cool breeze passed him, making his black cloak sway in the wind. He watched the dawn before him with a wistful smile.

Someday, things will get better. It was something he told himself every day ever since he awoke a year ago. Someday, Konoha will be back to normal, and he'd have his old teammates by his side. There would be no Akatsuki, no impending war, and the countries will finally have some semblance of peace.

For the millionth time that day, his mind travelled to a certain pink-haired teammate. His worry had made him restless, which prompted him to meditate as often as possible. His thoughts bordered on obsessive as he wondered if she was safe, being a new jinchuuriki and hiding it from the Akatsuki at the same time.

Just how complicated can her situation get? Once, he'd though his situation as a jinchuuriki was the most complicated mess, and now, it seemed that the teammate he now thought of as a sister was embroiled in a much worse situation, which resembled a ticking time bomb that would inevitably explode.

His thoughts drove him mad with worry, and he longed to talk to someone so bad. Kakashi, however, had forbidden him to do so. The only ones who knew the Kyuubi had survived and lived in Sakura were only Kakashi, Shikamaru and General Mifune, besides Naruto himself.

His mind travelled to a recent memory, where Naruto had begged the General to take Sakura in.

"_Please, General Mifune. Sakura is out there and we have to help her! Who knows what will happen to her? What if the Akatsuki finds out about the Kyuubi? She'll die!" the blond nin begged, his eyes pleading. _

_The man exhaled softly, his eyes softening as he watched the boy kneel on the floor to give a respectful bow. _

"_Stand up, Naruto," the wizened, grey-haired man said sternly, and the boy hastily got up, rubbing tears furiously from his eyes._

"_You know I lead a neutral country. Having a jinchuuriki here means we are taking a side, and I cannot allow my country's neutral stand to suffer and bring a war upon innocents living here."_

_Naruto's face fell and the man sighed. His hand came up to ruffle Naruto's hair in a fond gesture. _

"_I'm sorry Naruto… But I am sure she'll be fine, wherever she is. From what I hear, she is Tsunade's apprentice, and probably surpassed her already. She knows how to keep herself safe. She's a smart girl," Mifune's calm and soothing voice echoed in Naruto's ears, and he relaxed imperceptibly._

And now, she was in the clutches of the most infamous terrorist organization in the world, Naruto thought, sighing as he agonized over his teammate's predicament.

He remembered the conversation he had with his sensei a few days ago. Kakashi had told him that the Leader of Akatsuki had sensed remnants of his Kyuubi chakra, and suspected the Kyuubi to be alive. Since Sakura hadn't leaked it, she had to be wondering who else did. The only one who harboured the Kyuubi chakra was only her and Naruto.

Sakura was a smart girl; she would connect the dots, so she had to know he was alive. She had to.

_Just you wait, Sakura. I will find a way to save you._

000000

Sakura got out of the shower, towelling her hair with a relieved sigh. It took a long time to remove grime from the oddest places she had accumulated during their travel, and she was extremely grateful that the soap and shampoo the inn provided was strawberry-scented.

She loved strawberries.

Absentmindedly, she touched her left shoulder, where something akin to a birthmark lay there. It was a seal she had made herself, to prevent the Kyuubi from ever leaking out if she were to experience strong bouts of emotion. It made the seal even more foolproof, and she was grateful the seal was strong enough for Pein not to sense any Kyuubi chakra on her whenever they touched.

With a shiver, she closed her eyes and relived a memory involving the Rinnegan user. His gentle touches, his molten gaze and his reassuring voice…

She couldn't even begin to fathom why an enemy's voice sounded so reassuring to her ears. If anything, she should be terrified.

Yet, she couldn't help but notice how passionate his words sounded, the way his eyes seemed to glimmer as he spoke of a new world… and the way he looked at her. The words he spoke sounded strangely emotional, and yet, his expression was always that of a calm and collected person.

Her mind was still on the enigmatic man while she brushed her hair to rest on one side of her shoulder. With a pensive expression on her face, she exited her room and proceeded to Kisame and Itachi's room.

The door opened to reveal a cleaner-looking Itachi with wet, tousled hair, acknowledging her with a raised eyebrow. He was decked in black cotton shirt and pants.

"I thought it's best to start healing your eyes tonight," Sakura said, fidgeting on the spot in her T-shirt and shorts as he studied her intently.

With a murmur of assent, he opened the door to let her walk in. Sakura instantly noticed the main difference between the room and hers, double beds lying in the corner. The room was furnished with teak to give a zen-like feel, and came with a simple coffee table and two loveseats.

She could hear a shower in progress in the bathroom, and deduced it to be Kisame as the person inside hummed a tune, his tone deaf male voice bordering on screeching.

Ignoring Kisame's singing, she walked over to one of the beds and gestured to him. "It's better if you sit," she suggested, shrugging. Wordlessly, the impassive man sat down next to her.

She took in a deep breath at their closeness… and was instantly hit with the scent of strawberry.

Suppressing a hysterical giggle, she turned it into a cough, before resuming medic mode once more. With a poker face, she stretched her two hands out to touch his temple-

He stiffened, and before Sakura could get a chance to explain her movements, he grabbed her hands by instinct in a tight grip, his red eyes turning cold.

Sakura merely sighed. "Itachi-san, I'm just going to have to scan your eyes. I won't do anything else. You have my word." His Sharingan eyes seemed to bore into her jade ones as he seemingly mulled over her words.

After a while, he promptly let her hands go. "Hn."

Sakura deduced it as 'go ahead' in a typical Uchiha fashion. Once again, she pressed her fingertips to his temple, and he didn't flinch. Furrowing her eyebrows in concentration, she garnered green chakra and slowly let it seep in, focusing it on his optic nerves.

Itachi watched her intently as she seemed lost in her world, murmuring medical jargons he roughly knew and understood. He suppressed a smirk as she scrunched up her nose at one point. It was quite odd for a shinobi, especially of her considerably high calibre, to show her emotions on her sleeve, so much so that he had a hunch she wasn't really being honest with her emotions all the time. There were also times he could never read her, and her face became a blank mask familiar to his own. The girl was an odd and interesting mix of nonchalance and colour, and it was neither black nor white with her. With such a dangerous mix, it was difficult to decipher her true emotions, and it made a great tool for deceiving people around her.

It was no wonder she was chosen as the next best vessel for the Kyuubi.

"Close your eyes," she instructed, her jade eyes focussing on his red ones. The man shut his eyes, his body unmoving.

"I'm going to heal your eyes now. Your optic nerve is really damaged, and you are very nearly blind. It will take some time and a number of sessions to heal them. Try not to use the Mangekyou too often. The damage started with the Mangekyou, am I correct?" she asked, tilting her head as she bit her lip, her fingers still placed delicately on his temple.

"Yes," the man responded smoothly, his eyes still closed.

"Okay. You have to stop using it too much, or your condition will deteriorate. Try not to keep your Sharingan activated all the time as well."

"Hn." With that, the two lapsed into an oddly comfortable silence, hearing the noise of splashing water in the shower.

It was fifteen minutes afterwards that Sakura found herself satisfied with her healing process, and decided to stop. Stretching her arms above her head languidly, she let loose a weary sigh.

"We're done for today. How's your eyesight?" She asked, and Itachi's midnight blue eyes finally snapped open to focus on her.

He gazed at her, his expression transforming to one full of wonder. Their eyes interlocked and she fought the urge to fidget as he studied her features with even more intensity than usual.

Then his hand came up and traced a lock of her pink hair, as though he was marvelling at something she didn't know about. "I see… I can see now," he murmured, his eyes on her pink strands that contrasted with his pale skin of his palm.

Sakura beamed, thrilled that she managed to heal well. She knew she shouldn't be too thrilled healing a clan killer, but her medic instincts had come out to the front whenever a person near her was impaired or injured in any way.

_Tch. You're a sucker, Sakura. You shouldn't have healed him to the best of your abilities_, Kurama noted disapprovingly. _One day he will turn against you._

_Or maybe he will repay the favour, _Sakura shot back. Kurama stayed silent, opting to speak no more.

One day… maybe he will repay me.

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**So the poll results was that everyone loved him because he was blue and has this damn cool Samehada and sucks the chakra outta people. Hell yeah! I loooove Samehada. Wish I had one to suck the life out of my teachers… LOL.**

**So Itachi knows Sakura is a jinchuuriki. Pretty obvious who's the contact now…**

**New poll: Sakura or Hinata?**

**Ha, that's one abstract question there. I'll leave it to you to interpret it and spam me with your opinions XD Cheers!**

**Let me know if I make any mistakes!**


	17. Drunk

**200 reviews! I am a happy girl. :D Thank you so so so much you awesome reviewers!**

**Katara-Hatake: Yeah, I know. : ) But some were still asking so I made it more obvious for them again. Hehe. And I like Sak's development too! Thanks for reviewing! :D Enjoy this one!**

**Shadow Wolf: Thank you many berry! ;)**

**DontWaitUpForMe: Yep, Sakura is my favourite female too, though Kishimoto didn't really.. give her much of a development as anticipated. She was damn good initially in Shippudden, but she just fades into the background somewhat afterwards, and I choose to see her as how fanfiction writers do. :D Kick-ass! And I can't fathom the idea of GaaHina and SasuHina either… (wonders if it is ever possible) Thanks for reviewing! : ) Enjoy this one!**

**Black n Blue Sun: Hehe. Thank you many berry! :D**

**Asdf: Where's jkl? LOL sorry that was lame XD And yeah I can't imagine any of the pairings you said either! And yes, Sakura has just her hands :D nothing else. She's special that way! Hehe. Thanks for reviewing! : )**

**Akatsukigirl1223: Thank you so much! : D Enjoy this one!**

**KurayamiEra: Hehe thank you :D And I like Sakura toooo. Enjoy this one hehe!**

**Bloody-Immortal: Pein does everything like a BOSS XD Hehehe hell yeah! Enjoy this one and thanks for reviewing!**

**Noo3: I appreciate your vote XD**

**organizationkhII: I'll fix that later, thanks a lot for pointing it out! :D And yes I updated! Here ya go! : )**

**DiamondForest: (stares at loooong review) Oh, wow. I loveeee your long review! Thank you so much for pointing out my mistakes! I'll fix them later. I love your two cents so I don't mind! And I appreciate your opinions on both characters. I think you got both penned down pretty accurately. : D Enjoy this one!**

**SherryLovesChux3: Thanks for your vote! Enjoy this one! : D**

**Annyeong: Yes, she's the most realistic one out of all of them, totally agree! And yeah, Sakura is special in a way that she's not so special (without any clan abilities as you have mentioned, etc) And I want to make it strictly that, but my mind has other ideas and it's pretty hard to avoid… a certain relationship, in this story. So… it has to happen, this pairing. And… I think the pairing will be pretty important later on, so I have to include it. Oh gosh. Never expected it to turn out like a harem but OH WELL! XD Enjoy this one!**

**KagomeAngel91: Aha! So she is unique in a way that she has NO unique abilities and has to work from sheer strength and willpower! I totally agree! And yes she grew into something more! I like, hehe. Enjoy this one yeah and thanks for reviewing! : D**

**Jjangqueen: Team KURAMA? You and your crazy teams. Munthal. 8)**

**Sarah: Thank you many berry! : D Enjoy!**

**KiraTokyRickiSalvatore: Thank you so much! Enjoy this one!**

**SakuraEmma29: Thank you so much! :D I shall do my best! And thanks for your vote! Enjoy this one! :D**

**Scarlett Winds: Hehe. XD I ALSO WISH they displayed more of that in the manga and anime! I think it's a little 'unstable', Sakura's character. It's like she was so kickass in the first few episodes of Shippudden and then she just fades into the background. Anyway thanks for reviewing! :D Enjoy this one!**

**Kakafina94: My 200****th**** reviewer! Hello! And thank you for the praise! I just hope I can continue to show that in the next chapters! And thanks for your vote! (well, votes XD) Enjoy!**

**Results: Sakura won, hands down, and many said she was special because she was not so special. Which is unique, indeed. XD I hope I'm not confusing you. Eheh. **

**Anyway, what happens when Kisame gets drunk? **

**Enjoy this chapter! : )**

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It was then that the two Akatsuki nins heard a door sliding open and they looked up to spot a damp-haired Kisame trudging out of the bathroom in standard black pants and a T shirt. A familiar scent wafted into the room from the open bathroom and Sakura shot the blue man an undisguised gleeful grin.

"Strawberries, Kisame? Seriously?" The roseate-haired girl let out a small snicker, and she saw Itachi at the corner of her eye glancing at his taller teammate with a slight curl of his lips.

The Mist nin looked fairly disgruntled as he hung his towel in an available cupboard, sighing. "Pinky, the only thing this stupid inn has is that damn strawberry shampoo. Even _Itachi-kun_ here smells of it," he complained, missing the icy glare his male teammate sent his way. "Anyway, at least they provided this," he continued further, his expression and tone suddenly turning suspiciously cheery as his hands excitedly shot in the cupboard as though reaching for something.

His hand retracted with a huge sake bottle, and Sakura heard Itachi groan almost inaudibly. Curious jade eyes turned to look at him. She briefly noticed a strained expression behind his carefully schooled features, which were focused on the bottle in Kisame's hand. _Ah_. Sakura guessed that it had to be a bad habit of Kisame's.

It was Kisame's next sentence that proved her deductions to be accurate. The shinobi flashed her a shark-like grin, his beady eyes wild with happiness. "Ne, Pinky, let's have a toast to celebrate your entry into Akatsuki! Oh, and I heard medics can hold their alcohol well… Better yet, let's have a challenge to see who can hold their liquor!"

It was then that Itachi spoke up, turning his back to them as he headed to his bed. "Hold the contest in Sakura-san's room. I have no intention of partaking in this foolish game," he spoke silkily, his eyes narrowed slightly. With a muted sigh, he proceeded to sit in a meditative pose on his bed, closing his red eyes. Kisame appeared unperturbed and walked towards the door, gesturing for Sakura to leave the room as well.

_Ah. _"So, I gather Itachi-san is poor at holding his liquor?" The pink-haired nin hid a smile as she walked towards the room door that Kisame was holding out for her. The elusive Uchiha opened an eye to shoot her a cold glare. She hastened her steps and left the room before Kisame, who had just opened his mouth only to pour oil onto the fire, grinning madly as he did so.

"Oh Pinky, you have _no idea _what Itachi-kun does when I get him drunk as hell_-_"

A moment later, a kunai embedded itself into the room door with a loud _thwack_ – just milliseconds from where the shark nin stood before he had left the room.

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It was amusing to see an extremely inebriated infamous killer wax poetic and spout flowery language about the essence of life.

It was even so when the man was blue, large, and had gills on his cheeks. It was truly an amazing sight, and for a moment, the pink-haired nin rested her chin on her hands, watching him interestedly from her cross-legged position on the floor. Sakura knew that not many had lived to see one of the famed seven Swordsmen up close this way, and with him being so very open and unguarded.

Any enemy nin could kill him right now, and he probably wouldn't be swift enough to counter the person's moves. For a moment, she stilled at the thought of her doing so, an image of her driving a blade through his chest, his mouth trickling with blood as he stared at her with hurt, confusion, and maybe a hint of anger in his eyes.

To her dismay, she found herself disgusted for even thinking of it. How had she managed to confuse him as being one _not_ of the enemy? It was getting increasingly worrying as to how she had let the Akatsuki nins one by one, pass through her walls, which she had deliberately constructed around herself for the past two years.

She had let her guard down, and she shouldn't have. She had a foreboding feeling that the outcome of her predicament would not end well, now that she started to form attachments to the Akatsuki members. Sighing softly, she stared moodily at the floor, wishing she could reverse back time.

But if she could reverse time, where would she reverse it to? Would she reverse to the time Deidara and Tobi found her real self on the ground, motionless? Would she reverse time to the moment where Deidara was dying and she healed him? Or, would she reverse time to three years back to prevent Danzou's takeover?

_Too late to do anything now_, she mused. Brushing her fingers through her now drier pink locks, she gazed up at Kisame, who shot her an unassuming lopsided grin.

"Ne, Kisame?" she started halfheartedly, and steeled herself slightly for the plan she had constructed the moment she and him stepped into her room.

"Mm. Yes Pinky?" Kisame gave her another of his cheerful smiles before chugging down another shot of sake. "You see, I'm not even drunk yet!" Nevertheless, his sitting form was wavering slightly and he was blinking slower than usual as he said it. He gave her a toothy, innocent smile, though it fell short slightly because of his intimidating outward appearance.

Sakura sighed. It really was going to be difficult, but she had to push him for information. It was also helpful that she was a medic and could burn off the alcohol by concentrating her chakra on her liver. Hence… she was far from inebriated.

She was sober, while he was not. Sakura knew that it was a once in a lifetime opportunity to press him for information, since he was unlikely to remember what had happened afterward. She decided to do it quickly before guilt hit her halfway and stopped her from doing so. Her eyes turned calculating and gleamed as she spoke.

"You wish, Seabass. By the way, I've been wondering about someone in Akatsuki for quite a while. Do you know who Tobi is?" Her words were carefully measured and clear, as she wanted the Mist nin to hear her and process her words.

He blinked slightly, and there was a frown on his blue features, as though he was thi8nking of something unpleasant. "Hellll, Pinky. As though I have any idea," he slurred, tilting his head as he studied his empty glass with a dazed look.

Sakura's face fell.

"But I know _Itachi-kun_ is suspicious of him. And I am, too. He's weeeeiiird… He's the newest recruit out of all of us, excluding you of course, Pinky… and he's always talking to Leader. I find that he acts like he has a split personality sometimes. I can't help feeling like shit's going to go down whenever he's around. Don't you think so, Pinky?" He gave her a wide-eyed look, as though he was curious of her answer.

"Mm," Sakura answered noncommittally, as she mulled over his words in her brain. Kisame seemed satisfied, for he was suddenly extremely fascinated at the sight of the carpet he was sitting cross-legged on, picking on the black woollen material.

"So… Do you happen to know why Itachi joined Akatsuki, Kisame?" Sakura inquired, her voice deceptively mild. Casually, she took the sake bottle to pour herself another cupful.

There was a long moment of silence on the Mist nin's end. Sakura stilled abruptly, thinking that he wasn't inebriated enough and had figured out what she was attempting to do with him. However, the blue-skinned man let out an alcohol-laced breath into the air with a loud whoosh, frowning, as though he was thinking intensely about that hard question.

"To be honest, kunoichi… I don't even know. Not all voluntarily joined like him and me, you know." He let out a long sigh. Sakura paused halfway as she drank her cup of sake, raising a questioning eyebrow.

"So… you're saying that not all wanted to join Akatsuki when they were recruited?" She asked, a frown present on her face.

The Mist nin gave a bitter laugh, hiccupping slightly.

"Pinky, I don't know if you've realised the animosity between Deidara and Itachi yet, but why do you think Deidara hates Itachi so much? He was forced to join the group." At this revelation, Sakura's body tensed. Kisame continued his ramblings. "Ah, and about Itachi-kun. He's a cold-blooded killer, or so the civilians and the other crap nins say. But I don't believe that shit," he declared, waving his hand in the air dismissively.

"Seriously?" Sakura's tone was sceptical and she did not bother to hide it. He would forget all the details in the morning. Even if the alcohol didn't suffice for him to forget… she'd do it herself, making everything a foggy blur for him to recall tomorrow.

"Pfft. Bitch, I'm serious. Since when have I ever joked about this shit?"

Ah. So he cursed more when he was drunk, too.

"The world is like a gaping black hole, devoid of happiness," he continued sombrely. "I wouldn't lie for shit. It would just make the hole bigger."

Sakura fought the urge to roll her eyes exasperatedly. He was spouting his poetry again. Sakura was about to interject when he continued to speak, this time thankfully getting straight to the point.

"Honestly speaking, I think he's _not _a cold-blooded killer. There's something about him that I sense. It's like he has a reason for everything he does. I work with him long enough to see it. And it's the small things… the small, unnecessary things he does, that makes me think twice about him," he concluded, his expression turning as pensive as a drunk man could get. "Like… He doesn't like killing unnecessarily. He always gave me orders to stop killing once the job gets done, and you never go against an Uchiha, especially him. I did that once… nearly lost my head." He chuckled, absently rubbing his head.

"Also, I don't think Itachi-kun believes Leader when he promised a world of truth to us. I intend to see it of course, but I doubt he does. I don't really know his motives for joining, really. Maybe the pay is too good?" He let out a chortle and burped loudly. Sakura couldn't help but giggle slightly, a dimpled smile on her features as she watched him with a fond look.

"Anyway, bitch, life is too short. You should… go find a boyfriend… sometime," he slurred, and he blinked slower than ever as he tried to focus his vision.

_Uhuh. Sure_.

Sakura raised her hands in front of her in a placating gesture. "Sure thing, but I need you to answer one last question - Um, Kisame, what are you doing?" Her voice raised an octave as she spotted the Mist nin yawning and suddenly curling up into a sleeping position on the carpet. In her room, no less.

"Going… to… sleeeep," he drawled lazily, closing his eyes. "Night, bitch."

"But I still have a question- Oh, never mind," Sakura grumbled, watching glumly as her teammate's chest started to rise and fall slowly and his breathing grew even. He was knocked out in a matter of seconds.

"Night, Seabass," the jade-eyed girl whispered. For a while, she stared at the steady rising and falling of his chest, watching. Then she crawled over to him, her fingertips reaching for his forehead to do the necessary. It was a simple step for her to erase memory, and she had done it many times.

She hesitated.

Just do it, she told herself, and her frown deepened in concentration as she summoned her chakra to her fingertips.

Her chakra faltered, and with a start, she realised she couldn't do it. Frustration swelled in her chest and she let loose a small snarl, throwing her cup across the room. It smashed against the wall on impact, leaving shards to collect on the floor. Kisame didn't even stir.

Her vision blurred, and she felt cold trails of wet tears down her cheeks. Sobbing softly, she walked to the bed with a weary sigh and lay down, pulling the covers.

Her eyes slid shut, but it was a long time before her conscious mind did.

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**So.. she couldn't bring herself to do such a simple thing. I typed this in 3 hours, so I apologise for any errors. **

**She likes Kisame. Aww. : ) I like Kisame too. And she finds out about Itachi… I haven't included her thoughts about him yet because, well, she'll get plenty of him in the next chapter.**

**You will like the next chapter. Mehehe.**

**I feel (once again) like something is missing. Something… somewhere… Either that or I am braindead and I am reading too much into things. **

**Big thanks to those who review. And here's a new question! I totally had it in my mind and just had to ask, haha.**

**QUESTION: IS TOBI SEXY? XD**

**HAHA. Leave your comments below! : ) Toodles! **


	18. UPDATE

OMG okay first thing first:I am NOT abandoning this fic!

Sincerest apologies for the extremely delay for the next chapter, but I have been really busy and so many things have cropped up, all the drama, yadayada, life goes on, etc. Holidays are coming and I will be sure to give you guys a present! Expect something good by then! Catch you later and have a great week ahead! Lovelove! Sorry for the disappointment that it's not a new chapter, it's coming soon! :D

Staraz


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